Filed to story: Sweetheart Do You Still Love Me
“What is it?””Are you… lacking in that area?”His brows furrowed at her words.
“What area?””Well… Um, you know, that.”
Immediately, Callum understood her words, and his expression darkened.
“What are you implying?”Oh no, he really got angry. With that thought, Emma plastered a smile on her face, but her thoughts were a frantic mess.She tactfully stopped asking more questions, but in the following days, whenever she visited Callum, she would bring an invigorating meal with her. Soon, the entire building realized that his body was ‘not working’ through the strong fragrance of the food. However, this was a story for later.After successfully pranking Emma, Elspeth felt extremely refreshed.Meanwhile, Jordan had not recovered from her previous words, but upon seeing Elspeth’s hearty smile, he found an exasperated smile appearing on his face as well.
“I thought Emma was really going to piss you off this time.””Why would I? Do you think I’m someone like that? I’ll always be the one watching people burn, not the other way around,”
Elspeth said confidently.He rubbed his chin as he watched her delete her posts, feeling conflicted.
“What are you planning to do next?”She tilted her head in thought before saying,
“Why don’t we go back to the Joneson Residence in advance? There’s nothing else for me to do here, and I want to see that brat, Frank, too.””Before I came over, he got a beating for hiding the news related to you.”Elspeth let out a belly laugh at his words.
“Don’t worry, he’s the apple of the Jonesons’ eye. This much is nothing.”Hearing that, Jordan curled his lips into a smile, his eyes darkening as he said,
“That’s right. It was the first time I’d seen Frank being scolded like that, but he still insisted on not telling anyone about you.”Elspeth stopped laughing, suddenly feeling touched.
“Then, do you think I’ll still have to keep looking at him sulking if I go back now?”Jordan had no idea what to say, completely rendered speechless by her words.”Okay, since I’m done with everything, I have nothing else to stay for. We might as well go back to Blaydal.”Jordan nodded.
“Let’s go back together.”Before Elspeth left, she went to visit Yelena and the others.At the sight of Elspeth standing next to Jordan, Yelena dove into her arms tearfully.
“Emma just posted on Twitter, saying that she got together with Callum and they’re going to be engaged soon. She even said that Callum broke up with you a long time ago. Are you okay?”Was Callum going to get together with Emma so soon?”She’s right. I broke up with Callum long ago.”Max stepped forward hesitatingly.
“Miss Elspeth, I really wanted you to be my sister-in-law.”Elspeth smiled and sent a slap across his head.
“It’s fine. Don’t think about it too much. Although I can’t be your sister-in-law, we can still be friends. We’d just meet a little less often.”Sensing something off about her tone, Blake asked,
“Where are you going?””Back to Blaydal.”Yelena’s eyes widened.
“Why are you going back to Blaydal instead of staying in Damoria?”A smile appeared at the corners of Elspeth’s lips as she looked at Yelena’s silly expression.
“That’s because I’m part of the Joneson Family. I’m going back for my engagement with Jordan.”Engagement? Their eyes widened at her words, and as they looked at the relatively compatible couple, their hearts were filled with conflict. Blake in particular was emanating so much disappointment that even the dazed Yelena could sense it.”Don’t worry, Blake. Blaydal isn’t far from Damoria, so it won’t be a problem. We’ll have many chances to meet.”Blake uttered in a strained voice,
“I know.”
After bidding the three a farewell, Elspeth began to prepare for her trip back to Blaydal. She had planned to make a Twitter post to announce that she was about to get engaged to Jordan in order not to look as pathetic, but she was met with Jordan’s disapproval.
“Some people are already calling Callum an irresponsible scum, but if they find out that you’re also engaged to someone else, wouldn’t that ruin your credibility?”
Jordan smiled mysteriously with a hint of imperceptible slyness as he continued,
“It’d be better to wait a few days before posting it. Not only will it make Callum seem like a b*stard, but you can even keep up with your grieving and pitiful persona. Isn’t that a better plan?”Elspeth did not expect Jordan to have such a cunning side to him and did not know what to say in reply. However, she did agree with his idea.Upon seeing that she had given up on making a Twitter post, Jordan caressed her hair.
“Our engagement will eventually be exposed either way, so why not use this as a chance to teach Callum a lesson?”Elspeth was extremely shocked by his plan.
“It’s a shame that you aren’t working in public relations.”Jordan finally stopped laughing and said with a serious face,
“Is your company still hiring? If you are, I’ll sign up.”Elspeth rolled her eyes.
“Oh, shut up.””So, why are you telling me this?”Elspeth couldn’t wrap her mind around why he would put himself in such a position for her sake.”Didn’t I tell you before? It’s because I like you, and I really want to be with you.”Elspeth couldn’t quite make out the truth of Jordan’s words. Looking at the smile on his face, she was unable to think that he would approach her with any other purpose, but he didn’t seem particularly sincere either.That night, they took a plane back to Blaydal. Upon seeing how compliant Elspeth was, Michael was overjoyed and immediately allocated twenty percent of Joneson Corporation’s shares to her. With the marriage between Blaydal’s Joneson Family and Bellville’s Carr Family, every powerful and influential family in Blaydal, Bellville, Damoria, Waterside, and even those along the coast offered their congratulations.This matter took the internet by storm as well. As Elspeth owned many different identities and had fans from different areas, the news even overpowered Emma and Callum’s popularity all of a sudden.’Callum really is a b*stard for getting together with Emma right after ditching Elspeth. It’s a good thing that Elspeth was smart enough to run away with another guy!”You can say that again. I really thought that Emma was innocent instead of being such a disgusting and evil person. I can’t believe she’d steal someone else’s boyfriend and be shameless enough to post about it!”The Carr Family aren’t just anybody. They’re wealthy and powerful, and they’ve never had any scandals. Mr. Carr and Miss Lynwood really are a match made in heaven…’The netizens’ opinions were mixed, but most of them praised Elspeth’s engagement with Jordan and despised Emma and Callum’s actions.Meanwhile, in Waterside, Emma was nearly driving herself up the wall. She had never expected that her hasty announcement of her relationship with Callum would spark such a massive bashing.”Callum, Elspeth is being too much. She’d gotten engaged too, but she still pulled something like this to ruin our reputation!”Because of this issue, she lost millions of fans; nearly one-tenth of her followers unfollowed her.Callum looked at her coldly. The sharp decline in the Winthrop Family’s stock market was already enough of a headache for him, but Emma just wouldn’t stay silent. Upon receiving such an icy stare, Emma immediately stopped her chattering mouth. She stared blankly at Callum and swallowed.
“Callum, I…””If it weren’t for you announcing things in a hurry, why would your fans hate on you?”
He rose to his feet, his demeanor turning cold as he said,
“I already told you not to provoke Elspeth anymore or we’ll immediately break up.”Emma feared that Callum would break up with her the most, and she shuddered at his words.
“I understand, Callum. I won’t mess around anymore.”After seeing Callum’s irritated expression, Emma decided against lingering around any further and immediately returned to her hotel, where she made a call in her room.”Old Mr. Joneson, you’re too much. I helped you break Callum and Elspeth up, but you stabbed me in the back!”At her words, Michael scoffed.
“Isn’t this your own doing? Emma, had you behaved a little, you wouldn’t have been scorned.””You know best whom I’m doing this for! Surely you don’t want Elspeth to find out that her breakup was something that had been planned a long time ago, right?”Michael inhaled deeply and conceded,
“Enough, don’t threaten me. I’ll help you settle things, but if you cause any more fuss, don’t blame me for not holding back.”Emma gave him a pandering laugh.
“I understand. Don’t worry, I won’t bother you anymore.”Michael hung up mercilessly….On the other hand, in Blaydal, Frank still had not been discharged from the hospital even after a month since Elspeth’s departure. This was because Michael was afraid that he’d mess around before he fully recovered, thus forcibly locked him up in the hospital for another two weeks.When Elspeth went to visit him in the hospital, Frank was still being forced to take his supplements. Upon noticing her arrival, he instantly pounced on her and yelped,
“Elspeth, hurry up and tell Grandpa that I got better a long time ago and that I can get out of bed and play now!”Truthfully, as Elspeth looked at his pitiful expression, she had to stifle her laughter.”Okay, I got it. I’ll deal with it for you, but before that, you have to wait here obediently.”Frank’s excited expression immediately disappeared and he sat in a corner, sulking.A long pause later, upon seeing that Elspeth was not intending to comfort him at all, he immediately deflated.
“Okay. Let me ask you something now. Why did you break up with Callum?”Elspeth knocked his head.
“Didn’t you read the news?”Frank huffed.
“Why would Callum suddenly move on to someone else when he likes you so much? I think there must be a misunderstanding somewhere.””That’s what I used to think as well.”
Elspeth’s eyes darkened as she spoke.
“But I’ve asked him and sought confirmation many times, and I know that’s not the case. He really couldn’t forget about Emma.”Thinking that he had stepped on her weak point, Frank became frantic.”Okay, it’s fine. Jordan is genuinely a good man too. Besides being obsessed with work, everything else about him is quite all right.”Besides being obsessed with work… Elspeth curled her lips at the thought. What a good hobby to have if you ask me.”It’s true. You might not believe this, but Jordan has successfully sat in his office for 32 hours straight without moving before. He nearly turned into a wooden statue then.”Elspeth was reminded of Callum, who was a workaholic as well. It was currently three in the afternoon, and according to his habits, he must be having a meeting. He liked to drink coffee during his meetings-a cup of bitter Americano without sugar.Great, I’m thinking about Callum again.”But… Jordan had a first love too.”
“So, he had a first love. What about it?”
“That was three years ago, but the girl went missing. He liked her back then and spent a long time looking for her, but unfortunately, she passed away. Because of this, he became depressed before he placed all his focus on his work. That’s why he managed to make the company such a huge success in two years.”That means that Jordan is a fool in love too, Elspeth mused.”All right, let’s stop talking about this. Since you’re already seeing each other, you should enjoy your time together. Anyway, I think that the two of you are quite similar.”Elspeth shook her head with a smile.
“Two people who are similar to one another can’t be together. If the person I’m dating is like me, what’s the point of dating them?”Different things could only be gained from two people who could make up for each other’s flaws, after all.”But…””Okay, I was just saying. Don’t overthink it.”She stood up and continued,
“I promise to tell Old Mr. Joneson to have you discharged from the hospital. Right, I’ll be leaving now.””So soon? Stay and talk to me a bit longer, will you? It’s been a long time since I’ve talked to someone my age. That old geezer who comes to check on me every day keeps forcing me to take my medicine. I can barely take it anymore.”Elspeth turned around with a bright smile.
“Shall I find some pretty nurses for you, then?”Frank’s expression instantly darkened at her words.
“Shut up.”Soon, Elspeth learned of another piece of news. It seemed that someone was behind the scandal between Callum and Emma this time, fanning the flames and aggravating the situation. Because of this, things at Winthrop Group were getting out of hand.Although Elspeth did not intend to interfere with Callum’s affairs, she had put too much effort into Winthrop Group that she couldn’t just sit back and do nothing. Hence, she immediately called Callum.”Did you find out who’s behind all this?””I did. It’s Alphascape Group and Arthur’s work,”
Callum said, his exhaustion seeping through his voice.”Then, what are you going to do?”He replied nonchalantly,
“I’ll go with the flow.”Elspeth immediately burst with anger at his words.
“Go with the flow? What are you thinking, Callum? Are you going to let Winthrop Group fall into ruin just like this?””That’s all I can do for now.”Elspeth sneered.
“You have so many better plans, so why don’t you solve the problem? Didn’t we have proof of Alphascape Group committing tax fraud? Why are you…”Before she could finish, Elspeth came to a sudden stop, realizing that she was the only one who had the evidence of Alphascape Group committing tax frauds, and the photos as well as the recording were still on her phone to this day. However, because he had greatly wronged her, he would not seek her help at all and would rather watch Winthrop Group fall.”Callum, I’ll send the evidence to you.”However, she froze upon seeing that she had been blocked on WhatsApp.”I… forgot to block your phone number. From now on, don’t call me anymore.”Elspeth had no idea what he was thinking when he said that. He hung up the phone after speaking, and when she called him again, the call no longer went through.Callum, I’ll help you for one last time.She took a deep breath and suppressed her mixed feelings as she looked up the phone number of Alphascape Group headquarters. After getting the evidence last time, she used all kinds of methods to grind away Zain’s interest.”Hello, who is this?”
A familiar voice sounded on the other end of the phone. It was Dominic, whom she had never seen in a very long time.”It’s been a while, Mr. Little.”The voice immediately turned somber.
“Elspeth?”
“Yes, Mr. Little. I see you still remember me.”Dominic was clearly not in a good mood. Having been cheated last time, he was still reluctant to believe that this sultry-looking woman was actually hiding so many tricks up her sleeve.”Aren’t you about to marry into the Carr Family? Why are you still in the mood to call me?”Elspeth laughed slyly.
“I have something to ask of you this time, of course. You’re the ones behind Winthrop Group’s scandal, aren’t you?”A hint of discomfort could be heard in Dominic’s voice.
“What are you talking about? That’s impossible.””You should know a hundred times better than I do as to whether you did it or not. I don’t care how you planned this whole thing and thus framed Winthrop Group, but from now on, I don’t want to see any more negative news about Winthrop Group.”Dominic laughed heartily.
“What are you talking about? What makes you think you can order me around, Elspeth?””Because I have proof of Alphascape Group committing tax fraud in my hands.”The moment she said that, Elspeth knew for certain that Dominic’s expression must’ve darkened.”Why should I believe you?””If you don’t believe me, Mr. Little, I can read it out loud for you.”With that, Elspeth immediately started reading out the annual summary of their transactions. She hadn’t realized earlier, but only then did she find out that Alphascape Group had evaded such a large amount of taxes.Dominic started sweating profusely at her words.
“Okay, enough. Stop reading it.””Do you believe me now?”He hurriedly said,
“Yes, yes, I’ll take care of the news about Winthrop Group now! But you have to promise me that you won’t tell anyone about a single thing you just said to me!”Elspeth agreed with a smile. The people at Alphascape Group were rather efficient workers. She had just sat down for a rest when she saw on the news that Winthrop Group’s name had been cleared.I suppose he won’t have to worry as much now. We’re over, Callum….Back in Damoria, it had been a long time since Matthew last saw Callum, and when he finally managed to look for him in his office, he saw Callum standing by the window, spacing out in silence.”What are you thinking?”Callum snapped back to his senses at his voice, revealing a tired smile as he looked at Matthew’s face.
“Nothing.””Well, what do we have here? Mr. Winthrop usually looks so arrogant every time he sees me. Why did he smile at me today?”
Matthew’s words carried a hint of teasing.”I saw that Winthrop Group’s crisis had been lifted. You really are the real deal for dealing with those geezers at Alphascape Group without saying a word. News coverage of Winthrop Group’s vindication was everywhere today, did you know that? Even Mr. Little personally made an appearance to defend your company.”Callum’s eyebrows furrowed.
“What did you say?””Didn’t you see the news?”Callum naturally did not see it. His thoughts were in turmoil, Winthrop Group’s finances were tanking, and he had pulled the plug on Elspeth, so there was no time to spend on useless scandals. However, the moment he saw the news, he froze. A person popped up in his mind immediately, and without thinking, he knew that this was Elspeth’s handiwork.”It wasn’t you?”
Matthew scratched his head and asked,
“Then, who helped Winthrop Group out of its crisis this time?”Callum’s eyes had just met his when he immediately came to a realization.”Elspeth?”Callum remained silent.”Say, don’t you regret losing such a loving person?”Callum still didn’t reply, but a trace of hurt flashed past his eyes.After seeing him looking so downcast, Matthew placed both of his hands on his shoulders and asked with shining eyes,
“Why don’t we steal the bride?”
A trace of an unidentifiable emotion churned in Callum’s eyes.
“Get out.”