Avery and Layla returned home more than an hour later.They bought a lot of saplings and flowers from the market.The bodyguard opened the trunk and carried everything out of the car.Mrs. Cooper came out with Robert in her arms and glanced at their haul. "That's a lot of flowers you bought! They're so beautiful.""I chose them, and Mommy chose the saplings!" Layla seemed to have forgotten her unhappiness and had a bright smile in her eyes. "Mommy bought fruit saplings!""What kind?" Mrs. Cooper asked."She brought grapefruit, cherry, and... uh…what other saplings do we have?" Layla looked up at Avery."Peach and pear," Avery added."Yes! A peach tree and a pear tree! I like to eat peaches! So, Mommy bought a peach tree!" Layla lifted the bag of flowers excitedly. "I'm going to put them in a vase.""I've readied a couple of clean vases on the table. You'll see them when you enter the house," Mrs. Cooper said to Layla. "Be careful not to prick yourself on the thorns when you ta
"Are you telling me that Elliot transferred his shares because of Avery?!""I wouldn't dare to make such an assumption. I'm just telling you what I know." Harvey said sternly, "Elliot changed his mind when he found out it was for Adrian and transferred all of it, rather than just one-third."Ben gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. "God darn it! What the hell is Avery doing?! What in God's name does she want to do?!"Harvey advised Ben. "Mr. Schaffer, please calm down.""Don't tell me to calm the hell down! This company can no longer call itself the Sterling Group if Elliot leaves!" Ben said irritably. "He was its founder and poured all his money, enthusiasm, and hard work into this company. What right does Avery have to ask him to transfer his shares to Adrian? Avery's stupidity is costing Elliot! Darn it!"Harvey continued to persuade him. "Elliot has made up his mind. Being angry about it isn't going to change a thing.""Where is he? I want to see him!" Ben got up from th
Avery removed her gardening gloves and took the cell phone.The caller was Tammy.She answered the phone and heard Tammy's hurried voice. "Tammy! Ben crossed the line! He cursed you! He sent those unpleasant messages to their group chat and deleted it soon after, but Jun read everything and decided to tell me because he felt that Ben had gone overboard."Avery was stunned. "He was cursing me?""Yeah! He said some really awful things! I didn't read the messages, but Jun said that it was horrible. Even if you quarreled with Elliot, it's something that should remain between you two. Ben has no right to be scolding you!" Tammy was so furious that it was almost as if she was the one who was being cursed. "He deleted the messages after Jun and Chad chastised him in the group chat, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen." Tammy continued. "Remember to just ignore him in the future, Avery. He's probably irritable because he's having a mid-life crisis or something."Avery was relatively ca
"It's not a big deal. I just want to chat with you," Mike whispered."Then we can just talk out here!" Avery took him to the yard. "Alright, what's up?""What else? Don't you know?" Mike put his hands on his hips. "I know Adrian is special compared to other people, but you can't prioritize Adrian over Elliot!""I didn't!" Avery said."But that's what everyone thinks right now." Mike sighed heavily. "Avery, if Elliot isn't willing to fork out his money to save Adrian, you shouldn't keep on forcing him to!""I haven't even talked to him about this!" Avery frowned. "Do you really think I'd force him if I discussed it with him and he clearly refuses to help me?""You haven't talked to him yet?" Mike was a little surprised."No! I have a feeling that someone leaked this to him." Avery stared at his face. "Mike...""The main question now is how are you going to solve the problem?" Mike changed the subject immediately. "I'm here to advise you that you should explain everything to Elli
Mike's pent-up unhappiness disappeared immediately after hearing her words.What she said was true.Elliot had an irritable temper, and he would almost certainly lose his mind if he knew that Shea was still alive. He would even go so far as to kidnap Adrian and tie him down to the operating table just so Shea could get the kidney transplant.On the off chance that the operation failed and he saw Shea dying before his own eyes, how was he even supposed to face that immense blow?"There's only one way to solve the problems you mentioned," Mike said after calming down, "Bringing Shea to him if her surgery is successful."Avery nodded. "I know. That was my plan all along. Elliot would have been so happy to see her.""But he has misunderstood your intentions right now!" Mike roared. "He's not the only one who hates you right now. The people around him hate you too, including Ben and Chad...""Tammy told me." Although Avery was a little heartbroken, she was not concerned with their vi
"Why did you say that to them?" Mike was not too pleased. "You make it sound like you're leaving us. Are you planning something?""No. I just feel like you deserve the credit," she explained. "You never really liked working hard, but I dragged you along and turned you into a great businessman.""From what you say, I should be the one who's thanking you. Don't feel too sentimental, okay? If the company does end up getting sold, we'll still be able to start from scratch! Let's stay positive and pray that Shea will be able to live!""Did you tell Chad about this?" She sat down in her office chair."No." Mike then continued, "What's there for me to say? If Shea's operation is successful, we'll just bring her back and stun them.""What do you want for lunch? It's on me.""You're already thinking about lunch even though you've just gotten breakfast? Guess I'll take you up on your generosity and give lunch some proper thought! I'll tell you once I have something in mind," Mike said befo
"I'll send you a location. You can come when you're ready!" Cole said. "We'll talk about everything else when we meet."Cole hung up after he finished speaking.Avery's body froze and her heart was beating ridiculously fast.She wondered if Elliot had been up to all that when he disappeared in the past couple of days, and the answer appeared in her mind immediately following that thought.After all, no one could take Elliot's shares if he did not give the nod.Her tears immediately blurred her vision.She finally realized why everyone around Elliot hated her so much—they already knew about everything well in advance.How could they control themselves not to yell at her if Elliot transferred the shares?She felt as if she had done an unforgivable sin!They must have felt that she forced Elliot into doing that, but the truth was that she had every intention of discussing it with him before. Unfortunately, she did not get the chance to do so.The result was the same regardless o
Avery walked out of the restaurant with Adrian and received a call at that moment.After bringing Adrian to the car and sitting down, she took out her cell phone.The call was from Mike.He had already arrived at the restaurant where she had reserved a table for them to have lunch, but she was nowhere to be seen."Mike, I'm with Adrian. I've already ordered the food, so you can get someone else to eat with you." She suppressed her grief and pretended to speak calmly."You're with Adrian?"His question, however, caused her emotions to collapse in an instant. "Elliot transferred all the shares to Adrian! All of them! He hates me, Mike, he hates me! That's why he's punishing me this way!"Mike was so startled that he breathed heavily and his mind turned blank in an instant.He finally realized why Ben and Chad hated Avery that much. It was all because Elliot made such a ridiculous decision!What Elliot did was no different from suicide!Had Mike known that Elliot would do that,