Chapter 25
In the big dining room, Lydia was still kneeling and begging repeatedly. “Mr. Fletcher, you gotta believe me. I’ve been here in Tranquil Garden for so long. Please, my kid is still with them!”
Vincent’s voice was indifferent. “Isn’t it normal to be punished if you make a mistake? Connor
Connor appeared. “Yes, Mr. Fletcher.”
“Take her to the secret room and deal with her according to the family rules,” Vincent ordered.
Lydia looked up abruptly and begged, “Mr. Fletcher, please forgive me!”
He smiled, “It seems that you finally remember what kind of person tam.”
Connor kind of knew what Lydia had done wrong and already had two guys ready just in case. They were only waiting for Vincent’s order.
When Lydia was dragged out, she kept begging for mercy. “Mr. Fletcher, I don’t want to go to Snake Forest…”
Sophia scrambled to clean up the spilled stuff on the floor and cleared the messed-up breakfast from the table.
Vincent wasn’t happy to see Stephanie’s cooking in the trash. Sitting on his lap, Stephanie gave him a hug. “No biggie. I’ll whip up something else for
you.”
Vincent’s gaze became softer. “How did you find out?”
Stephanie was ready with her answer. “Well, I know a bit about traditional medicine. I checked your pulse the night we got our marriage license and something seemed off. Then I saw you had traditional medicine every day, which is warm-natured. And it made me think: maybe something you’re eating’s messing with you,
Vincent chuckled. “I lost two sleeping pills.”
She stuck out her tongue, feeling a bit embarrassed. “I took the pills and asked my friend to test those. I didn’t expect you to check the amount.”
“The bottle had a special sticker that glows at night when touched,” he explained.
“Were you worried I was up to no good?” she asked.
“No.” His gaze was determined. “Stephie, when you feel my pulse, can you find out any other problems? Did you find out if my legs might get better?”
Stephanie almost said she was the famous Miracle Doctor Summer, but waited. She was afraid that it might be too late to reveal her identity now. And Vincent hadn’t let on that his legs were fine all along. It was better for her to play dumb, so she shook her head.
“Is that it then? No hope for my leg?” Vincent raised an eyebrow.
“No,” Stephanie explained, “I mean, I can only do basic pulse diagnosis. That’s out of my league.”
“It’s all right, you’re awesome, Stephie. You caught the sneak. You know, Miracle Doctor Summer checked my mom’s pulse today. If I had known that you have some medical skills, I would’ve introduced you.”
Stephanie thought, “Sure, like I can be in two places at once…”
Vincent then said, “Next time Dr. Summer drops by the house, you’re coming with me.”
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12:46 Sat, 25 May M
Chapter 25
It’s totally unnecessary!” she yelled inwardly. Contrary to her heart, she smiled, “Okay.”
“When did you install the surveillance camera? Vincent asked.
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“Just a couple days back.” She hopped off his lap and headed for the doorway. Standing on her toes, she reached for something high. Her shirt lifted a bit, and Vincent caught a glimpse of her back, which made him swallow hard.
She took down a tiny micro camera, Stephanie resumed sitting on his lap naturally and showed him the camera. “This is a new model. It’s hard to be noticed and very useful.”
Vincent took a look at the camera. “It’s manufactured by Xosa Base. You know the good brands.”
Stephanie nodded. “The technology products made by Xosa Base are the best. Although they are expensive, they are worth it. Besides, Xosa Base has detailed research on artificial intelligence. They have a bright future ahead. I’m kinda into the brainy guy running the company too.
“You’re interested?” Vincent asked.
“He’s an interesting man. He won’t sell to someone he doesn’t like, even for a boatload of cash, but if he likes you, he might give you a deal,” Stephanie replied.
Vincent pinched her chin, “Hey, saying another guy’s name in my bed is one thing, but digging another dude while you’re in my arms?”
“Are you jealous?” she asked smilingly.
They answered in unison, “No.”
Vincent looked at Stephanie gently and chuckled. “You are cheeky. Don’t mention other men in front of me from now on, okay?”
Raising her chin, she challenged. “What if I did? Are you going to punish me?”
“Yes. Severe punishment,” he teased.
“Are you going to throw me to Snake Forest too?” she retorted.
Vincent played with her bracelet. “Of course not!”
“But what kind of place is Snake Forest?” she asked curiously.
“You won’t want to know,” said Vincent. Then, he continued, “After breakfast, I have to go to Fletcher Group for a meeting. I’ll fetch you to the styling studio in the afternoon for my mom’s birthday party tonight.”
“Ugh, that sounds like a drag, I’ll just roll with you to the office. I’ll doodle or something while you’re busy,” Stephanie suggested.
“You sure you won’t get bored?” Vincent asked.
“Never, I
soon!
I just want to stay with you,” she said with a smile that melted Vincent. Stephania hopped off his lap. “Wait for me. Your breakfast will be ready
After breakfast, they visited Christina, who lived on the second floor.
At 7:30 am., Zane came to pick Vincent.
up
At 7:30, Zane arrived to fetch Vincent. Seeing Stephanie come along, he looked surprised but just rolled up the divider in the car, not eager to catch any more of their cutesy stuff.
12:46 Sat, 25 May
Chapter 25
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At the office, while Vincent hit the conference room, Stephanie made herself cozy by the couch on the carpet. She spread out some drawing paper on the
coffee table.
After a while, someone knocked on the door and entered.
The second secretary, Chloe Wells, came in with a bag. She brought various types of cakes, cookies, and hot chocolate. Everything took up almost half of the coffee table. “Mr. Fletcher wanted you to have this. Enjoy!”
“Thanks!” Stephanie packed up part of the goodies. “Let’s share these with everyone.”
Chloe’s heart s i p p e d a beat, She nodded. “Thank you, Ms. Hayes.” She hurried out of the office with the bag, her heart beating rapidly.
The other assistants crowded around her when she got back to her desk.
“How’s Stephanie in real life? As stunning as her pics?” one of them asked, leaning in.
“Is she really as stuck-up as the gossip says?” added another.
“Come on, Chloe, spill it!” urged a third.
Chloe shushed them with a grin. “Look, Ms. Hayes just gave us a bunch of treats, okay? She’s super nice and, yeah, she’s really pretty. So cut the trash talk
she’s gonna be the boss’s wife. Here, everyone grab one, and let’s get back to work.”
After finishing up three drawings, Stephanie snapped some pics and texted them over to Julianna. [You’re on fire!] came back Julianna’s reply, with an
emoji for extra cheer.
Stretching. Stephanie couldn’t resist digging into a slice of cake.
When Vincent got back around lunchtime, he found Stephanie crashed on the couch, a little smudge of frosting on her face. He chuckled to himself and reached out to clean it off when suddenly she stuck out her tongue, surprising him.
“Stephie, do you know what you are doing?” He gently touched the corner of her mouth. She stuck her tongue again and licked away the cream on his finger.
It turned out that she wanted to eat cake.
He looked at her dotingly and intended to withdraw his finger. But the next second, she grabbed his hand tightly and mumbled unconsciously,
Vincent…
Vincent couldn’t restrain himself anymore.