"I don't have any money. I already gave you a lot. I thought last time would be the final time you asked.
I'm not giving you any more,"
Cherry said angrily to the man on the other end of the phone.
She didn't have any feelings for her so-called father—other than hatred, that was.
Her "father" only threatened her and forced her to give him money.
"Fine. Turn me down. And then I'll expose who you really are, my lovely illegitimate daughter. What do
you think Kevin will do when he finds out? Do you think he'll still want you?"
The man on the other end of the phone started fuming when Cherry refused to give him money. So, like
he always did, he turned to threats.
"Why do you always try to scare me with this? Can't you just leave me alone?"
Cherry sat on the bed dejectedly. Her long hair was messy, and she looked quite embarrassed.
"Leave you alone? Why would I do that? You're such a cash cow. I need a meal ticket and you're it," he
sneered.
Cherry wanted to kill him right now.
Thanks to him, she had been carefully hiding her identity. He was right. If Kevin found out she wasn't
rich, but instead born out of wedlock, who knew what he might do?
"I really am strapped for cash. I gave you a cool million last time, didn't I? I'm not made of money!"
Every penny Kevin gave her went to her nominal father. What more did the man want? And how far
was he willing to go to get it?
"I don't care. I need at least two million this time. If you don't give me the money, I'll tell Kevin
everything."
The man on the other end of the phone didn't care about her at all. He only wanted money.
She wanted to say something more, but he had already hung up. Hearing the telltale "click," Cherry
was so angry that she threw the phone at the wall.
The relationship between her and Kevin was tense enough. If her so-called father told Kevin her real
identity, he might even dump her.
What should she do? What should she do!
How could she get two million?
By the time Kevin got back to the villa, it was dark, and he was exhausted. When he got to Cherry's
room, he intended to simply walk past it. But then he thought of her sad eyes. His heart softened.
He opened the door to her bedroom and walked in. There was only a small lamp, throwing barely
enough light to see by. Apparently, she had fallen asleep.
Kevin walked to the bedside and tucked her in. He regaled her with a guilty look. He never imagined he
would fall in love with Anne, nor did he think he would ever say something so hurtful to Cherry.
He looked at her for a while, watching her chest rise and fall, lost in thought. He then stood up and was
about to leave, but she grabbed his hand.
"Kevin..." Cherry said in a weak voice. She opened her eyes, and there was heartache in that gaze.
Pausing, Kevin frowned slightly, and soon a feeling of frustration rose in his heart.
"It's so late. Why are you still awake?" There was no emotion in his voice.
"Kevin, can you stay with me for a while? Just a little while." Knowing that Kevin didn't want to stay with
her any longer, Cherry looked at him with sorrow, holding him tightly in her hands, as if she were afraid
he would disappear in the next second.
"You're still very weak. Get as much sleep as you can, Cherry. Let's talk about it when you're better."
Kevin was really worried about her health. And he didn't want to stick around at this late hour. He knew
what she wanted, but he wasn't interested.
"Kevin, I just want to talk to you. I miss your voice. I really don't want anything else. Don't you even
want to spend a little time with me?"
She bit back tears of grief. Her voice was thick with sadness.
Frowning, Kevin looked at her with concern and then sat beside her.
"I'll stay here till you fall asleep,"
Kevin said in a rare, gentle voice. He had never spoken to her like that since Anne left.
"Kevin, are we that far gone? Are you really going to break up with me?" Cherry held his hand tightly
and didn't want to let go. Her beautiful eyes were full of reluctance.
"Cherry, let's talk about it when you're better."
Remembering Cherry had cut her wrist to commit suicide, Kevin still had a lingering fear. He might not
want to date her, but he didn't want her dead, either. He might not get over it if anything really
happened to her.
After all, he was the one who hurt her.
"Okay, let's talk about it later. Can I rest my head on your shoulder?"
Cherry struggled to stand up and leaned against his chest. Listening to his strong heartbeat, she knew
this was where she belonged, and she would ever let him go easily.
He wanted to push her off, but when he thought of her weak body, his heart softened again.
"Go to sleep. I'll be here with you." Holding Cherry in his arms gently, Kevin looked at her indifferently,
with a strange emotion flashing in his black eyes.
He didn't know if Anne was doing well in America. Did she miss him?
After a long time, when Kevin saw that Cherry had fallen asleep in his arms, he gently laid her down,
tucked her in and walked out of her bedroom.
As soon as the door was closed, Cherry opened her eyes. She hadn't fallen asleep at all. She was
merely pretending.
She saw that Kevin was day-dreaming. She knew he was still thinking about Anne.
She couldn't go on like this. If she couldn't be Kevin's woman, she couldn't face her greedy father.
She didn't know if Selma had come up with a decent plan. If it went on like this, she really didn't know
what to do.
Kevin walked out of the bedroom and dialed a certain number.
It was very late where Kevin was, but not in America. It should be afternoon there. The call was
connected quickly.
"Mr. Kevin," the man on the other end said respectfully. "I think you know who I'm calling about," said
Kevin.
"How is she these days?" He cut straight to the chase. He was calling about Anne.
"She's still looking for the child, but she hasn't found anything yet," the person on the other end of the
line answered.
"I know. Don't let anything happen to her, but don't let her know you're watching, understand?"
He didn't wait for a reply. He hung up after issuing that command.
It had been a few days since she came to America, but there was no trace of the child's whereabouts.
And Sam was acting strange, too, like he had something on his mind.
"Sam, what's wrong with you? You act like you want to say something. As they say here, it's a free
country." Looking at the frown on his face, Anne couldn't resist asking him.
"It's nothing. I'm just... thinking about something. Are you headed out now?" Sam's words tumbled out
of his mouth. But his explanation wasn't entirely convincing.
"I've heard nothing about my son for a while now. I can't just wait around here. I have to figure out
where he is myself."
It had been so long, but there was no news of her child. She couldn't afford to be patient. Where on
earth did Kevin hide her child?
"Okay. Be careful. Call me if you need anything."
Sam wanted to tell her what was going on. But he was afraid she'd be angry with him if she knew the
truth. So he decided not to say anything at all.
"Okay, see you later." Without noticing Sam's reluctance, Anne left.
Watching Anne walk away, Sam hesitated.
After waiting for quite some time, he finally took out his phone and dialed a number. He knew it was
late there, but he had to know.
"How long are you going to keep it from her? Do you want to keep her searching for the rest of her
life?"
Sam read Kevin the riot act as soon he picked up the phone. He was angry at Kevin, and felt bad for
Anne. He also felt guilty because he was in on it.
"She'll come back to me soon." Standing in front of the huge French window, Kevin looked ahead with
a cryptic expression.
Since he had made up his mind to get her back, he would definitely let her come back.
"Have you really made up your mind? I'm not sure about Anne. She doesn't really talk about you often."
Sam knew that Anne had suffered a lot because of Kevin. He always cared for her, so this bothered
him. She was sad every day, and yet he still lied to her. He was angry with himself.
"Really? The woman I want will come back to me!" Anne was the only one he wanted. One way or
another, he'd get her back.
"Good luck then," Sam said indifferently and hung up the phone.
He didn't think it would be that easy for Kevin to get her back.
Anne was a stubborn person. Kevin had hurt her deeply this time. Was it reasonable to expect her to
want to go back to him?
Cherry stood quietly on the stairs. She overheard Kevin talking on the phone. He was hoping to get
back together with Anne.
He looked in the direction of the stairs, and saw Cherry standing there. Seeing her pale face, he
frowned.
"Why are you up already? Aren't you supposed to be asleep?" Kevin asked in an indifferent tone. He
sat on the sofa, his legs crossed.
Biting her lower lip, Cherry walked up to him.
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