“Lucian, I’ve been married to you for three years, but you’ve never once touched me. I’ll give my blessing to you and your first crush by giving up on our marriage. Tomorrow, you’re free to go after her. But for now, just make it up to me for my feelings for you all these years, please?”
With that said, Roxanne Jarvis leaned down and pressed her lips to the man before her as though she was a moth drawn to fire. Her action was both frenzied and desperate.
She knew this was a despicable move, but she had loved him for too long.
All the while, she had suffered greatly, and now, all she wanted was a little consolation.
“Roxanne, how dare you!”
Lucian Farwell clenched his jaw as his fury sprang to life. His handsome face was as black as thunder.
He wanted to push her away, but the mounting desire in his body was too overpowering. It threatened to burn away all his capacity for reason.
How dare she scheme against me?
“I’m afraid of nothing…”
A lone drop of tear slipped out of the corner of Roxanne’s eye. Her kisses grew rapid as her inexperienced hands fumbled around his body hastily.
All she wanted was to own him entirely for once.
A wave of fury crashed through Lucian.
Alas, things weren’t under his control.
Soon, his instincts took over. As his body burned up, he lost his rationale completely.
The next day, Roxanne woke up at dawn.
Tamping down on her discomfort, she got out of bed and put on her clothes. After that, she pulled out the divorce agreement she had prepared from the drawer and placed it on the bedside table. Before leaving, she gazed at the man in the bed.
“Lucian, I’ll set you free. From today onward, we shall go on separate ways. We will have nothing to do with each other anymore,” Roxanne murmured.
She averted her gaze and turned to leave.
Her heart was full of bitterness and anguish as she stepped out of the Farwell residence.
Roxanne had loved Lucian for seven years.
She had a crush on him from her teenage years until her university days, so her biggest wish was to be his wife.
Alas, Lucian despised her the moment she married into his family.
Back then, his grandfather was critically ill and needed a joyous occasion to hopefully ward off the bad luck. As luck would have it, she was selected to be Lucian’s wife.
Her greedy father and stepmother immediately agreed to the marriage.
She could still remember how delighted she was as she waited for the night of her wedding.
Yet, when Lucian showed up, he bore a disgusted expression. “Roxanne, I’ll have you know that the person I want to marry is Aubree Pearson. I never wanted to marry you! Only Aubree has the right to be my wife. You’re not good enough for me,” he declared.
Roxanne knew that Lucian wasn’t obliged to love her.
However, she still held on to the hope that the man would warm up to her one day.
In the past three years of their marriage, she did her best to be a good and caring wife.
Every night, she’d prepare dinner so he could come home to freshly cooked meals.
No matter how late it was, she would only go to bed in peace after his return.
If he got drunk at social events, she would take care of him meticulously instead of leaving him in someone else’s hands.
Whenever he got ill or hurt, she would be more worried than anyone else.
Every winter, she would switch on the heater and fill the bathtub with hot water for him. In the morning, she’d wake up earlier than usual to warm his clothes up so he wouldn’t feel the cold.
Nevertheless, he never loved her, and he never would.
The day before yesterday was Roxanne’s birthday, but Lucian went to the hospital to keep Aubree company.
It was then that Roxanne finally understood that her one-sided feelings would never be reciprocated.
She would never make Lucian fall for her, for his heart belonged to another woman.
Thus, Roxanne decided to give up.
Lucian only roused by ten in the morning.
The first thing he wanted to do after getting up was to choke Roxanne to her death.
Lucian was the CEO of Farwell Group, known for his acuteness. No one in the corporate world was his match. Thus, he had never fallen for someone else’s trap.
Never in his wildest dreams did he expect to fall for that woman’s trap!
Simmering with anger, he glanced around the room but didn’t see Roxanne anywhere. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the document on the bedside table.
“What is that?”
Lucian’s brows furrowed as he picked up the document with the words “Divorce Agreement” printed in bold text on the front page.
His gaze narrowed dangerously.
First, she resorted to that despicable trick to force me to have sex with her, and now she wants a divorce. Ha! How many tricks does she have up her sleeves?
Lucian refused to believe that Roxanne wanted to divorce him for real.
Getting to his feet, he put on his clothes and strode downstairs furiously. “Did you see Roxanne?” he asked the butler, Lance.
Taken aback, Lance replied swiftly, “Mr. Farwell, Mrs. Farwell left home with her luggage before dawn.”
Hearing that, Lucian halted in his tracks in surprise.
Six years later, at VR Medical Research Institute, Yartran.
Roxanne had just stepped out of her laboratory when her assistant, Linda, told her, “Dr. Jarvis, Professor Lambert needs to talk to you. He wants to see you in his office.”
After staying up the entire night, Roxanne was feeling drowsy. However, upon hearing Linda’s words, she snapped out of her daze as her mind cleared.
“Did he say anything? Don’t tell me my little rascals destroyed the research results again?”
“Apparently,” came Linda’s answer.
She shot Roxanne a sympathetic look.
Roxanne was an efficient and capable woman. At a young age, she became the mentee of Harvey Lambert, the best professor in the medical world. With her outstanding capabilities, she was never reprimanded for her work.
Nevertheless, that didn’t stop her from being the scapegoat for her naughty sons.
Linda comforted her, “You spent three days in the laboratory, so Archie and Benny were worried about you. They spent their days bumbling around in Professor Lambert’s office. I think he got a few new white strands of hair from the trouble they caused.”
Hearing that, Roxanne felt an incoming headache. She couldn’t help but find the situation funny, too.
Six years ago, she left the Farwell residence and headed overseas without hesitation.
Initially, she wanted to further her studies but soon discovered she was pregnant.
Back then, she was caught in a dilemma on whether she should abort her children. When she arrived at the hospital, she changed her mind, for she couldn’t bear to part with her children.
In the end, she kept her children.
Roxanne was pregnant with triplets—two boys and a girl.
During her delivery, her baby girl was born without any signs of life due to a lack of oxygen, and only the boys survived. She nicknamed her sons Archie and Benny.
The thought of her genius sons gave Roxanne utter bliss.
However, she slumped her shoulders when she recalled she was about to get reprimanded, thanks to their actions.
——
Roxanne hurried to Harvey’s office.
After pushing the door open, she spotted the little rascals inside. They were sitting on the couch in the office and swinging their legs nonchalantly.
The boys lit up at the sight of Roxanne. Scrambling off the couch, they ran toward her excitedly. “Mommy, you’re finally done! I thought you’d be staying in the laboratory forever!”
“Mommy, you’ve worked hard! Are you tired? Sit down. I’ll give you a massage.”
They led Roxanne to the couch so she could take a seat.
As Roxanne took in their concern, she suddenly felt it was worth it to get yelled at.
“Look at how obedient you are. You weren’t like this when you hacked into my computer earlier!” Harvey huffed angrily behind his desk.
Archie declared, “It was all your fault, Professor Lambert! You kept asking Mommy to work overtime. Look, she’s getting malnourished!”
“That’s right! Mommy’s an ordinary human being. How could you ask her to work day and night?” Benny chimed in as he kneaded Roxanne’s shoulder.
His temper spiking, Harvey gave a bark of laughter and responded, “You’re too overprotective of her! Everyone in the research institute does the same!”
With that said, he shook his head and turned to Roxanne. “How did your research go?”
Roxanne shot him a grin. “It went smoothly. I’ll send the data to you later.”
She paused before asking, “Have you restored the data in your computer?”
Harvey ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “It has been an hour, but I still can’t restore anything.”
Amused, Roxanne patted Benny’s hand. “Benny, go restore Professor Lambert’s computer. Don’t be naughty. What if he loses some important data?”
Benny immediately replied, “That won’t happen. I prepare a backup and various security levels every time. He won’t lose a thing!’
As he said that, he trotted over to Harvey and restored the latter’s computer.
The little boy’s fingers typed on the keyboard furiously and produced lines of codes.
A few minutes later, the computer screen blinked and returned to normal.
Harvey took one look at his computer in admiration. He had to admit his mentee’s sons were geniuses.
At a young age, Archie was already a medical genius. He was capable of differentiating thousands of herbs and showcased his talent in medicine. He also had a sharp eye for investments.
Benny, on the other hand, was interested in programming. He was now a little hacker who was very sensitive to numbers. Like his brother, he also did great in investments.
Besides, both of them were adorable, mature, and cheeky.
Thus, he couldn’t bring himself to yell at them whenever they kicked up a fuss. Instead, he could only vent his frustrations on Roxanne.
Roxanne immediately offered an apology. “I’m sorry, Professor Lambert. Please don’t blame the kids for their naughty acts.”
Please don’t yell at me, too. I can’t always be their scapegoat, can I?
Harvey chuckled at her reaction. “Don’t worry. I didn’t summon you here to yell at you. I have a task for you. Listen, I’ve been planning on setting up a research institute back in the country. It will be focusing on traditional medicine. However, I’m still busy here and can’t leave for now. After careful consideration, I’ve decided to send you back!”
Roxanne had no idea he would say that. She froze and hesitated.
Go back home?
She never thought of going back to that place again after leaving six years ago.
After all, she didn’t have a family or someone she cared about back there.
Besides, she had grown to love Yartran.
Her first reaction was to reject the offer. “Professor Lambert, I—”
Harvey interjected, “Roxanne, I know you don’t want to head back, but I hope you’ll consider my suggestion. You’ve been my student for years, so I believe you know how wide and profound traditional medicine is. There aren’t enough herbs here for you to research. In Chanaea, you’ll have all the herbs you want. You can use and research them freely. Most importantly, many hidden and prestigious families are in possession of ancient medical skills in Chanaea. I remember you’re interested in that, right? That was why I made the suggestion for you to return to Chanaea. You have a bright future ahead of you. Besides, you’re different now. No matter what happens, or who you run into, I believe you can handle everything calmly, right?”
At his words, Roxanne fell silent.
He’s right. I’ve changed into a completely different person now. I can face all obstacles without fear. Besides, it has been six years. Perhaps that man is already married to his first crush. Why am I afraid?
With that thought in mind, Roxanne took a deep breath and nodded solemnly. “All right, then. Professor Lambert, I’ll listen to you and return to Chanaea.”
Harvey beamed. “I’m glad you made up your mind quickly. Don’t worry. I’ll ask Linda to come with you. I’ll also arrange a team to help you out there.”
“Great. Thank you, Professor Lambert!” Roxanne gave a curt nod.
As they were conversing, Archie and Benny shared a look. They could sense each other’s excitement.
Mommy’s finally returning to Chanaea!
In fact, the two of them had been dying to head back for ages. After all, their father was back there. They wanted to see him in person. Of course, they also wanted to teach him a lesson for deserting his wife and children.
Two days later, Roxanne and the boys landed at the international airport in Horington.
Roxanne was finally back in Chanaea after six years.
After disembarking the plane, they walked out of the hallway. Just then, Benny squeezed his legs together and tugged at the corner of Roxanne’s skirt. “Mommy, I need to pee now.”
Roxanne and Archie giggled at the sight of his urgent expression. “Okay. Let’s go, then.”
She reached out to ruffled Benny’s hair.
At once, Benny trembled violently. “Stop it, Mommy. I’m going to pee my pants!”
With a chuckle, Roxanne led him to the restroom.
Archie then brought him into the restroom while Roxanne waited outside with their luggage. She didn’t forget to send her professor a text to inform him about their arrival.
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out.
“Idiots! How could so many of you fail to keep an eye on a little girl? What use are you if you can’t even complete such a simple task?”
There was a hint of fury in the man’s melodious, deep, and rich voice. It was pleasing to the ears.
Roxanne’s hands, which were initially typing out a message on her phone, froze instantly.
Six years had passed since she last heard this voice, but she still found it eerily familiar.
Looking up, Roxanne spotted the tall figure some distance away.
Standing not far off was a tall man. His black suit accentuated his long legs and added a touch of elegance to his figure. Even in the crowd, he was eye-catching.
Roxanne could see his perfect side profile from her line of sight.
His tall nose and sculpted features were the envy of many. In fact, he looked so handsome that other men paled in comparison to him.
Lucian Farwell!
Roxanne’s heart clenched at the sight of him.
She had no idea she’d run into him on the day of her arrival.
The feelings she had buried deep in her heart emerged temporarily, but she quickly put a lid on them.
Her gaze turned frosty.
She could finally appear calm before him.
Right then, the boys emerged from the restroom. “Mommy, we’re done!” they declared cheerfully.
Roxanne snapped out of her reverie and nearly had a heart attack.
The first thought that popped up in her mind was that she needed to leave right away. I can’t let Archie and Benny see him. They bear a resemblance to him. If they bump into each other, he’ll definitely realize something’s wrong!
Roxanne refused to get involved with him yet again.
Flustered, she urged, “You’re done? Come, let’s go. You don’t want your godmother to wait, do you?”
Without waiting for a reply, she dragged her luggage away.
Halfway through his phone call, Lucian heard a familiar voice and turned at his shoulder.
From the corner of his eye, he spotted a familiar female figure.
Roxanne Jarvis? Is that her? She’s back?
Lucian ran after her immediately, but her figure had already disappeared into the crowd.
As his gaze turned dark, Lucian was about to explode with rage.
She left the country so resolutely and even abandoned the kid. There’s no way she’s back!