The two ladies got in first and took the back seat, and the two men got into the car later with Terry in the driver's seat and Jackson in the passenger seat.As the car glided onto the road, Lisa suddenly had a funny thought. Her tiny car suddenly seemed more majestic with the presence of the Valor Group and White Maple Group CEOs. People would be surprised to know about this.The two men were silent on the way back. Meanwhile, the two ladies in the back were chattering. Lisa did most of the talking while Serenity listened."By the way, there's a popular TV show lately. Have you watched King's Lover yet?" Lisa asked.Serenity shook her head. Work had occupied most of her time lately. She worked during the day and came home at night. By the time she was home, she usually browsed the web before going to bed."It's pretty good. The plot... Ah, I can't spoil it. I'll give you the website later. Oh, the lead actor is the same Finn Gorden you loved back then," Lisa mentioned. She had re

Jealous of an actor and a TV character, Terry was annoyed yet helpless. He could not deal with Lisa's obsession with actors. It seemed he would have to live with it.Terry could not handle Lisa well. Lisa could put up with his drastic tactics and would push the limits at any chance as soon as he was nicer to her. Lisa was a real pain in the behind.Lisa had also said that Serenity used to be a big fan of Finn's. Terry felt a little better hearing that. It seemed that he was not the only one annoyed by this!Jackson and Terry took turns driving along the way, and they each took half the distance. It was already past 9 pm when they arrived at the San Marco facility.Terry had made the arrangements prior to their trip. Upon arrival, the staff led them to a room next to the meeting room.There were several large screens in this room, showing live footage of the meeting room. They could see and listen to conversations happening in the meeting room next door.Moments later, the mediato

"What do you mean by that? Illegal money?! My work and money are legitimate!" York denied it, a tinge of guilt in his eyes.The mediator changed the topic and asked casually, "By the way, I went to your parent's house yesterday and talked to them. Your parents have a heavy Solarian accent. Are they Solarian?" "Yeah. My parents used to live there.""Are you from Solaria too? Why did you settle in San Marco? Solaria is much better than San Maroc," the mediator chatted as if making small talk."There's too much pressure in a big city. It's smaller here, but life is comfortable.""Right." The mediator smiled and added abruptly, "I almost forgot to mention. The guy you hurt wanted me to ask you about Ms. Hall. He wants you to do as he says and pay up, otherwise, he'll tell the public and expose you.""Ms. Hall..." York's face paled slightly, but he tried to hide his panic. "I don't quite understand what you mean by exposing me, but I was a witness in a case some years ago. The deceas

Jackson was like the king of Solaria—he would always have what he wished for. He could overturn the case if he wanted to. Besides, Serenity was innocent. They would eventually find the real mastermind behind this.Lisa cheered up, no longer gloomy. "It's almost noon. Let's go for lunch," she suggested.Serenity nodded in agreement. The four of them then left the facility and got into the car.Lisa dug through the list of good food in San Marco hurriedly and found a couple of places for Serenity to choose from. The two men had no objection, naturally. Terry then drove the group to lunch.They decided on a local specialty restaurant in San Marco, an old favorite. The four of them requested a private room and began ordering food.Lisa did most of the ordering and decided according to the food ranking list. She ordered everything that had lots of good reviews and ended up with almost 20 dishes. Lisa looked around and realized that she had ordered too much food, but there were only f

"Alright, let's eat," Jackson urged.The four of them had lunch together, and while eating the shrimp, Serenity felt a little shy when Jackson offered to peel them for her. Her best friend, Lisa, and Terry were both staring. Lisa even winked at her, making Serenity flush with embarrassment. Jackson, on the other hand, seemed relaxed. He did not care about the stares.When they finished the meal, Jackson reminded Serenity, "Don't forget to take your medicine 20 minutes after the meal.""Okay." Serenity responded."Are you sick?" Lisa was shocked and asked with concern."No, not really. It's some kind of medicine for joint pain," Serenity explained.Lisa was surprised. Lisa knew that her friend had health issues after spending three years in prison. Serenity suffered from rheumatism and pain, particularly in cold and cloudy weather. Lisa had previously tried to get Serenity to go to the hospital and get it checked, but Serenity would always give her the same excuse. She underst

Serenity understood Lisa's concerns. "It's fine. I'll find out the truth eventually. I'll give Mira justice and clear my name!" Serenity spoke with determination and then asked in reply, "Let's stop talking about me. What about you? How are you with Terry?" "What else can I do? Just let it be." Lisa shrugged. "Anyway, we seem like a couple in a normal relationship."Lisa's relationship with Terry seemed very normal, which often put Lisa in doubt. She wondered if she was seriously dating Terry and would fall for him. Lisa kept reminding herself that it was not real. Her relationship was just a game, and Terry would have his revenge once she fell in love with him."I feel that it's not what you think. Terry probably isn't seeking revenge," Serenity suggested. A man like Terry had plenty of options to get his revenge. There was no reason for him to pick such a lengthy and time-consuming method to get back at Lisa."I also hope it's not what I imagined." Lisa pouted in disagreement.

Terry noticed Lisa's sparkling eyes, and for some reason, he felt annoyed again.When they returned to Solaria, they headed to the Valor Residence first. Terry moved to the driver's seat once Jackson and Serenity had left the car."Serenity! I'll see you next time," Lisa waved goodbye to Serenity."Okay," Serenity responded. "Thanks for today and take care!" After that, she walked through the gates of the Valor Residence with Jackson.Lisa's eyes remained glued on Jackson and Serenity. Soon, Terry's impatient voice rang in her ear. "Are you done yet?""I'm just staring. What's wrong?" Lisa grumbled. Lisa did not think of Jackson as a homeless guy when she had first met Jackson in Serenity's rented place. Who would have thought? Jackson actually turned out to be an all-powerful bigshot in Solaria!While Lisa was lost in her thoughts, Terry cupped her cheeks and turned her head to look at him. "What? You said you loved my face two days ago. Why are you looking at Jackson now? Are y

'Forget it! Fine! I owe it to him!' Lisa thought to herself.***When Serenity and Jackson returned to the Valor Residence, Jackson asked, "Feeling disappointed today? We made a trip to San Marco and found nothing useful."Serenity shook her head. "I'm fine.""You're not disappointed?" Jackson seemed a little surprised."Because you're willing to help in my journey to prove my innocence," Serenity said, feeling grateful. "It doesn't matter if we find useful clues or not. I'm just happy with your help."She felt his trust in her, and the barriers between them seemed to be slowly fading. He gazed at her steadily. He understood her desire to clear her name, but... He could clear her name but not give her the truth—the truth she wanted to know."As long as you're happy." His lips curled into a smile. He changed the subject and asked, "You don't have to go to work for the next few days. What are your plans?""I thought about visiting Grandma in two days," Serenity mentioned. She h

"I wanted to know how bitter it is," Jackson explained, examining the taste of the bitter liquid medicine in his mouth. "It's so bitter."Serenity felt speechless. Who in the world would take the medicine itself to find out how bitter it was?! Not to mention, the medicine was meant for women's health.Such a small amount of residue would not cause a bad tummy, but... Jackson seemed a little too reckless."Why don't you have a candy too? It'll help with the bitterness," Serenity spoke with a piece of candy still in her mouth."Okay," Jackson hummed. Instead of taking the candy from the tray, he leaned toward her and put one hand against the back of her head, his handsome face close to hers."Jack..." As her lips parted, his kiss landed on her lips. Jackson captured her mouth in an intense kiss, stealing bittersweet tastes from her lips, leaving Serenity breathless. Serenity could barely tell what flavor remained in her mouth when the kiss ended, and she looked at him with flushed

After a moment of hesitation, Serenity nodded and agreed with Elliot's suggestion. She did not want to put him on the spot.Serenity then had the chauffeur drive her to a mall downtown.Serenity wanted to buy some clothes and food for her grandmother. The food section was on the first floor, so she headed there first.Serenity looked at the pastries and made her pick. Foods high in sugar or carbohydrates could cause spikes in Emily's blood sugar levels, so although the pastries suitable for the elderly and people with high blood sugar were a little more expensive, she bought them anyway. After paying the bill, she walked up the escalator with the box of pastries.Just as Serenity arrived at the second floor, a figure strode toward her. Someone slapped her hard on her face before she could even react.Serenity stumbled and almost fell to the ground, barely steadying herself. Unfortunately, the box of pastries in her hand fell to the ground."Hey, who is this? Aren't you the murd