The photo was sent to Eric’s phone.After Eric saw it, his complexion turned dark at once. Even his gaze was tinged with a gloomy chill.The two people in the photo were extremely outstanding in the drizzle. They were looking at each other with a tacit understanding.Their gaze collided. Their eyes had an undisguised familiarity and regret of not meeting each other sooner.‘When did they get so familiar with each other?’Eric’s face was tense and ugly.After a long time, he called Toto.“Mr. Ferguson, are you calling because you miss Ms. Stanton? She’s alright. She also said that she misses you!”There were a few seconds of silence.Toto felt that something was wrong.Eric finally spoke in an icy tone.“Toto, you dare to fool me?! Do you want to drown to death in the Seine?!”“Mr. Ferguson, w-what’s wrong? What did I do?”Toto suddenly panicked. ‘Did he already find out that Ms. Stanton’s professor is a man and that she even met with Mr. Sloan?’“Huh…” Eric sneered and di
Luca’s face was fierce and cold as he followed them. He glared dangerously at Toto.If Toto was not walking next to Nicole, Luca would have beat him to a pulp by now.Nicole’s phone kept chiming with message alerts. She glanced at it and saw that it was Yvette.[Why didn’t you reply to my message? Are you really dating Clayton Sloan?!]......Nicole did not reply and was surprised to see more than two hundred unread messages and notifications.‘What the hell? Why is everyone asking about Clayton?’[Ian Carter: Are you really together with Clayton? Are you ready to be a stepmother? I only want you to be happy, but I think maybe you should consider Eric Ferguson…][Julie Nixon: Clayton’s not a bad choice, but don’t take it seriously! How can an older guy be better than young hunks, amirite?][Kai Stanton: Are you ditching your dozens of boy toys? The entire showbiz is at your disposal, so you’d better think this through!][Grant Stanton: Money is King. What’s the use of feeling
Yvette hung up without saying a word. ‘What a horrible friend!’Nicole deleted the post, so those comments disappeared.She finally had some peace.Nicole did not need to reply to everyone because Yvette the big mouth would set everything straight for her.Even so, news of Nicole and Clayton dating was uncontrollable and spread swiftly and violently like wildfire.By the evening, there were all sorts of tabloids’ headlines like “Nicole’s new lover exposed” or “Nicole’s mysterious new love”.Nicole’s popularity was something everyone in showbiz was envious of. Anything that involved her name was sure to go viral.Since Nicole was abroad, she did not know about what was going on in Mediania. When she heard about this matter, news of this was already uncontrollable.Nicole happily went to her class reunion while the whole country was discussing her new love interest.When Nicole returned from the party, Yvette called her.“You’ve gone viral again!”She then sent Nicole a screen
Nicole subconsciously wanted to help Eric hold up the IV fluid. The needle on his right hand was about to fall off. Beads of blood were seeping out.Eric’s face was miserably pale, and his thin lips were pressed into a straight line. His eyes lit up for a moment when he saw her.“Nicole, come in...”He took a few steps backward and lay back down on the bed.Nicole stood in the doorway and watched as Eric struggled to hang the IV fluid back in place, so she walked over to help him.She looked down at him. “Mr. Ferguson, how are you feeling?”Eric’s eyes flickered slightly as he smiled.“Much better now. You didn’t catch a cold, right?”Eric raised his eyes. His face was pale, and his voice was still a bit raspy.His gaze when Nicole looked at him was suffused with sadness.It was quite pitiful.“No.”Nicole’s heart trembled slightly. She walked to the chair opposite the bed and sat down as if nothing had happened.Toto came in with a bowl of chicken soup and looked at the f
Luca looked at Nicole, who raised her eyebrows and nodded. Luca then went outside.Eric and Nicole were left in the room.The air was cold.Nicole smiled. “Well, since you’re done eating, I’ll take out the empty bowl. Sleep early!”She stood up frankly and prepared to leave.Naturally, Nicole did not notice Eric’s cold, stern eyes that had a hint of grievance which soon dissipated.Everything seemed to be within reach, but Eric still could not catch her.“Nicole…” His voice was raspy and weak.Nicole paused and looked at him.“Yes?”“Why did you post that photo?”Eric’s lips were pressed into a straight line. His eyes were as dark as ink.Huge waves of emotions were hidden in those eyes.He was waiting for an answer, yet he was afraid of it.Nicole curled her lips and flipped her hair back. Her smile deepened.“Because he’s my new love…”Nicole wanted to use this as an excuse to make Eric give up on her.For a moment, Eric’s face turned even whiter. The pain in his eye
Nicole lowered her eyes. “Forget it. I can’t drag you into my mess because of my selfish reasons.”She knew very well that Eric would not believe a simple photo.Eric was only so mad just now because he did not come to his senses.Nicole withdrew her gaze and smiled. “Goodnight, Mr. Sloan.”“Goodnight.”She went back to her room.Nicole took a shower, changed into her pajamas, and was called over by her father to have a video call with the rest of the family.Grant had some work matters to discuss with Nicole. After the two of them sorted it out, the heaviness on Grant’s brow remained unabated. At that moment, Kai showed up on the screen.Kai yelled, “Are you really dating Clayton Sloan?!”Nicole knew that Kai was the biggest gossip queen in their family.“No!”She was speechless.Kai let out a sigh of relief.“That’s good. You can have a fling, but don’t take it seriously. If you do, you’re really a lost cause.”Nicole was speechless.Grant said, “K has a point.”It wa
Toto smiled radiantly and lied without batting an eye.Nicole looked at Eric, who raised the cotton candy in his hand. His gaze was gentle and deep.“Well, do you like it?”Nicole looked at Eric with a complicated expression. ‘Cotton candy? This isn’t at all like Eric’s style!’Before she could do anything, Lil Michael excitedly ran over from her side.“I like it! I like it!”As the crowd froze, Lil Michael took over the cotton candy and bit into it viciously.“OMG! It’s so sweet that my baby teeth are gonna fall off!”Lil Michael covered his little cheek and ran aggrievedly into Nicole’s arms.“Pretty Lady, my teeth hurt…”Eric was exasperated, but he had to maintain his composure and pretend to be gentle and kind.“Be careful then.”Eric had no other choice because he was at a disadvantage.Thus, he could not simply offend anyone close to Nicole.Nicole patted Lil Michael’s fluffy curls. She knew that Eric was pretending, but she did not expose him.“Then don’t eat it.
Lil Michael thought, ‘No one can take away my Pretty Lady, not even Daddy!’When Eric saw this, a light and warm smile spread across his face.Suddenly, Eric felt that Lil Michael was not so much of an eyesore as before.“Mr. Sloan, don’t get angry. Your son has always been like this. He takes after you…”Clayton was speechless.Before Clayton said anything, Lil Michael immediately pulled Nicole’s hand and ran away in a fit of anger.Nicole followed the boy to a quiet place, where he finally stopped and panted.“Pretty Lady, among us three big men, who treat you the best?”Lil Michael blinked his bright, clear eyes and said the most innocent words.His sapphire eyes looked so pure.Nicole was stunned. ‘Three men? Lil Michael, Eric, and Clayton? Big men?’She could not understand what Lil Michael was thinking, but she still coaxed him.“Of course it’s you!”Lil Michael laughed happily and patted his chest proudly.“That’s for sure! I’m the best! The two of them are ugly, s