Julian stood frozen, stunned.§
Sebastian rubbed his chin and said playfully,
“Didn’t expect Vanessa to have such taste. Baby, why not leave her a leg?“)
I rolled my eyes at his shameless tone.
To be fair, our marriage was entirely thanks to his thick skin.
After my divorce, my senior sister, who ran a gallery overseas, invited me for a break.”
I was em?
drained at the time, and she encouraged me to express everything through painting.”
“Better to let it out than bottle it in,” she said.
Unwilling to see my talent go to waste, she secretly exhibited some of my work in her gallery.”
To my surprise, several people expressed interest–one of them was Sebastian.}
I was shocked when I heard he outbid everyone by offering ten times the price and insisted on meeting the artist.”
Curious about this over
generous fool, I agreed.§
The first time we met, I asked him bluntly why he paid so much. Sebastian grinned and said:”
“Well, if I don’t spark your curiosity, how else will you agree to see me?“}
“Painting’s great to vent sadness, but have you heard–nothing heals a broken heart faster than finding a better man. Like me.”}
I was stunned by how well he understood my work–stunned even more by his shameless charm.”
In short, we somehow ended up together. Then we got married. Then came our adorable son.
And the truth is, Sebastian was right.
Wrapped in his love, I gradually let go of the pain Julian caused and rediscovered happiness.§
After settling the score with Vanessa, Sebastian instructed his assistant:
“Find out how many residents live in Imperial Crest Manor and give each one a villa for our overseas development projects. Effective immediately, no one is allowed to buy or live in any property owned by the Cross family.”
“And by sunset tomorrow, I want Cross Corporation bankrupt. Spare no expense.”
Turns out Vanessa was wrong–Sebastian wasn’t giving Julian any face.
In his eyes, the Cross family meant nothing.
He had the community’s surveillance footage retrieved and had the security guards and property staff who harmed me sent to jail. As for Julian, who instigated the whole thing, he was detained for ten days.
Originally, I had only returned to America with my family for a relaxing vacation.”
But instead, we ended up in the middle of a mess.
Because our son was starting school soon, the nanny took him back early to help him adjust to the time difference.)
And to prevent the wound on my face from getting infected, Sebastian insisted I stay with him in the hotel-
We ended up spending half a month in a shamelessly blissful world of just the two of us.
On the day I checked out, I had just stepped out of the hotel when I saw Julian kneeling outside.
His hair was messy, and he was clutching two plane tickets.
The moment he saw me, he sprang up, grabbed my arm, and said excitedly:
“Arielle, I’ve waited so long. The Rose Manor is finished. I’ve been saving it for you.”
“You’ve always loved roses. Let’s remarry and have the grandest wedding there.”
The next second, his arms were twisted behind his back with a loud crack of bones. Sebastian appeared, face dark, teeth clenched:
“My wife hasn’t divorced me. Remarry you? Are you dreaming?”
“Let me remind you–your precious Rose Manor has already been mortgaged.§
Cross Corporation’s bankruptcy swallowed everything.”
Julian winced from the pain, veins bulging in his temple.
He turned to me, shouting in frustration:
“Do you really think destroying my company will win her heart?”
“She only married you because she was angry at me!”
