Chapter 1

Anne Vallois gradually gained consciousness. She felt a sharp pain in her body. When she opened her eyes, she saw a man with thick black hair beside her. She was scared out of her wits, so much so that she almost screamed out loudly, but she quickly covered her mouth. She had a flashback of what happened last night. When she recalled the details, she felt like smacking herself. She wanted to drown her sorrows at the bar because she found that her boyfriend had cheated on her. So, she ended up in this situation now. She dared not recall too much, nor did she have the courage to look at the man's face. She clumsily climbed out of bed and embarrassedly picked up the clothes from the floor before running away without looking back… Two years later… Anne was looking at some short videos on her phone gallery on her flight home. The videos, safely kept on her phone, were all about some children from birth till they were two years old. "Mama!" "Mama!" "Mama!" Hearing her children calling out to her in their childish voices and looking at their faces with fair skin kept her smiling and her heart melted. After the one-night stand in the Presidential Suite two years ago when Anne was still a college student, she got pregnant. Without a second thought, she ran to the hospital for an abortion. However, she hesitated when the doctor told her they were triplets. However, when she was in the operating room, she ran away as they were preparing the anesthetics. Looking at the adorable pair of boys and one girl, she was glad that she kept them. This soothed her from her anxiety and fear about going back home… How long had she been away? Four, five, or six years? If she could, she would never come back. However, her aunt had always been nice to her. Her aunt and uncle-in-law wished for her to attend their anniversary party. They missed her a lot since they had not seen her for a long time. Anne missed her aunt, too, but she just had many bad memories of her days in Luton. She planned to leave Luton once the party ended… Anne was dressed in a white dress and a pair of high heels. She went into the ballroom of the hotel. The decoration of the hall was grand, and the sounds of conversations filled the air. She was lost. "Anne?" Anne looked back to see her aunt who was calling out for her from a distance. She walked toward her aunt and greeted, "Aunt!" When she saw her aged but well-maintained uncle-in-law standing next to her aunt, some memories flashed across her mind. "Uncle…" "I knew it was you, but your aunt said it was not. Anne, welcome back. It’s been such a long time," Ron Marwood said as he looked at Anne pleasantly. Sarah Vallois went forward to hug Anne with her teary eyes, saying, "Anne, it is really you! You're finally back! I have been missing you. Why haven't you visited us after such a long time…" Anne felt guilty. After her mother passed away, her father never took care of her. It was her aunt who took her in and took good care of her when Anne began to go to junior high school. Anne had been grateful for this… "Let me take a closer look at you." Sarah let go of Anne and looked at her from head to toe. Sarah was astonished and uttered, "My Anne is so gorgeous. The moment you came in, all the men’s eyes are on you." "Just like you," Ron said smilingly. "Of course, Anne and I are from the Vallois family," Sarah said proudly as she was very pleased with Anne. "Don't leave now that you're back. I will find you a good man." "Huh?" Anne thought of her three children abroad and said, "Aunt, I'm not in a hurry. I'm only twenty…" There was a commotion from the entrance. A few men came in and stood on both sides in order. They took control of the hall and instantly ceased the pleasant ambiance of the hall. When everyone was confused, a tall and well-built man walked in. He was in a dark suit and looked at ease, exuding a powerful aura. Everyone in the room was taken aback by his presence. Anne looked blankly at that vaguely familiar face. He had a handsome but serious face along with a pair of dark and unfriendly eyes, looking back at her coldly. "Anthony?" Ron called out with surprise. Anne felt her scalp going numb. At that moment, she no longer felt the presence of everyone else around her. The pieces of her scattered memories regrouped. That night in the Presidential Suite two years ago… Her sons would increasingly resemble their father as they grew older… All the emotions she had buried before were slowly emerging at this moment… How could he… How could he be the man from that night? How could he be Anthony Marwood, her aunt's stepson… Anthony, about 6.2 feet, was walking toward her, exuding a powerful aura and making the air around him suffocating. "Anthony, when did you return?" Ron did not expect his biological son who had fallen out with him would show up at his anniversary party. Sarah, who was by the side, became stiff and looked panicky. She had always been afraid of Anthony. Although he was her stepson, he always appeared scary. "Oh? Am I not welcome?" Anthony asked in a low and hoarse voice with a hint of anger. His sharp gaze moved towards Anne's face. Anne looked down with her face pale. She felt shivers down her spine as if she was preyed on. "Of course not! Sarah and I are delighted to see you. What a coincidence! Anne is back, too!" Ron looked at Anne and asked, "Do you remember Anne? She stayed with us when she was in high school." Anthony stared at Anne with an intimidating gaze. "Can’t forget." Anne dared not look at Anthony's face from the start because she was intimidated. "Aunt, I… I'm going to the washroom," said she. Before Sarah could speak, Anne ran away. She even bumped into someone, but she left hastily after apologizing. When she found the washroom, she looked at herself in the mirror as her biggest fear had finally surfaced. ‘What should I do? ‘Did Anthony know that I was the woman from two years ago? It seems unlikely, right? He would not have touched me if he knew. He hated my guts back then! ‘No matter what, I cannot stay here! There are so many videos of my children on my phone. ‘They are his mini-me. How can he not be suspicious? ‘No! No way! He must not know! ‘There should be a backdoor here, right?’ Anne thought to herself. She then left through the emergency exit without even saying goodbye. However, after taking a few steps, she was stopped by two men in front of her. Her legs went to jelly because she recognized that they were Anthony's bodyguards… Meanwhile, a serving staff with a tray passed by. Anne went backward and threw the tray at the bodyguards before turning to run away! "Catch her!" The drinks splashed the bodyguards, but they wasted no time. Anne tried her best to run and hid in the kitchen of the hotel… “Staff Only,” someone shouted at her. Anne could not care less! She ran to the back of the kitchen and saw an exit for the chefs to smoke during their breaks. She rushed out and arrived at an alley.