'Jewelry?' I wondered.

I furrowed my brows slightly and raised my voice to ask Ryan, who had just gone into the bathroom, "Ryan, Jessica's here. I'll head down to take a look."

The next second, Ryan quickly walked out of the bathroom. His face was colder than ever. It was an expression that I had never seen.

"I'll go. It's none of your business, go wash up."

The man who had always been calm in front of me suddenly had a trace of emotion in his voice. He sounded annoyed and nervous at the same time.

A strange feeling arose in my heart. "I've already washed up. I was the one who squeezed the toothpaste on your toothbrush, have you forgotten?"

"Alright, let's head downstairs together then. We can't keep the guest waiting."

I held his hand and walked down the stairs.

The staircase was in a spiral. When we were halfway down, I could see Jessica wearing a white dress and sitting elegantly on the sofa.

She also raised her head when she heard us coming down the stairs. When she saw mine and Ryan's hands, her hand trembled a little and she spilled some of the drink that she was drinking.

"Ouch!" Jessica gasped due to how hot the drink was.

Ryan quickly released my hand and rushed down the stairs in a panic. He then took the cup from Jessica's hand. "I can't believe how stupid you are. Can't you even hold a cup properly?"

His voice was sharp and cold, but he still grabbed Jessica's hand and headed towards the sink to rinse the burn with cold water.

Jessica felt helpless and wanted to pull her hand back. "I'm fine. There's no need to make a fuss."

"Shut your mouth. Don't you know that a burn can still leave a scar if not treated properly?" Ryan scolded coldly but still wasn't letting go of Jessica's hand.

I stood on the stairs and looked at what was happening in a daze.

Memories came flooding back into my mind.

After we just got married, I found out that Ryan had a bad stomach, so I began learning how to cook.

We had Brenda in the house, but her cooking didn't suit his taste.

As a beginner, I would occasionally cut myself or burn myself.

One time, I accidentally knocked a pan over and the oil on it splashed onto my stomach. The oil stained my clothes and burned me quite badly.

When Ryan heard the noise, he just walked over and asked me as gently as ever, "Are you alright? You go take care of yourself and leave the rest to me."

He was kind and caring, but also indifferent.

I would occasionally feel that something wasn't right, but I've had a crush on him for many years. Most of my diary was about him.

Being able to marry him already satisfied me.

However, I just felt that he had an indifferent attitude towards most things.

"But I thought I prepared some water with lemon for Ms. Jessica." Brenda's mumbling beside me pulled me back to my senses.

My vision somehow became blurred and my heart seemed to be squeezed by an invisible hand, which caused me to find it difficult to breathe.

Ryan personally took the cup from Jessica's hand, but was so worried about her that he forgot to determine the temperature of the drink in her hand.

I took a deep breath, walked slowly down the stairs, and looked at them with a meaningful smile. "Honey, the drink that Brenda prepared for Jessica was water with lemon. It's a cold drink. She can't get burned. If you continue like this, you might need to worry about frostbites."

I wanted to hold back the sarcasm but couldn't.

Ryan's body froze for a moment and then let go of Jessica's hands. He avoided my eyes and turned to Jessica. "Why did gasp when you spilled cold water on your hand? Don't you think you're overreacting?"

Jessica glanced at Ryan and then looked at me with a gentle gaze. "He's always like that, exaggerating things. You can just ignore him."

As soon as she finished speaking, she walked to the table, picked up a luxurious-looking gift box, and passed it to me.

She smiled gently. "This is back where it belongs."

I took the gift box, opened it, and then dug my nails into the palm of my hand.

A mixture of feelings arose in my heart.

'Jessica's the woman in the video?' I wondered.

When I raised my head again, I hid all my emotions. I wanted to smile, but couldn't.

Last night, I was forcing Ryan to bring the necklace back. The necklace was now in my hands, but I didn't feel at ease whatsoever.

I turned and looked at Ryan. That was when I saw that he was trying to hide something in his eyes. He then reached out and pulled me into his arms.

"Do you like it? Keep it if you like it. If you don't like it, then just give it to anyone you want. It's not expensive anyway. I'll just get another present for you."

"Okay." I pursed my lips and decided to not embarrass him in front of Jessica. Or should I say to not embarrass myself?

For a moment there, I couldn't tell why Jessica was here today.

Did she feel that she really shouldn't keep the necklace, or was she trying to make an announcement?

Seeing my reaction, an expression appeared on Jessica's face, but it was too fast for anyone to see.

She smiled. "I was scared that this necklace would cause a misunderstanding between the two of you. Looks like it hasn't. Well, I should get going now."

Brenda was the one who saw her out.

As soon as the door closed, I broke free from Ryan's arms. "I thought you said you bought the necklace for Tom? Moreover, isn't Jessica married? Since when did she become one of Tom's girlfriends... Mmmm!"

He kissed me without reason and broke me off.

His domineering actions made me feel like he was venting his emotions.

Just when I was finding it difficult to breathe, he let go of me a little and caressed my head. "I lied." He pulled me into his arms. "She's divorced. I didn't want her to be too upset, so I got this present for her."

I was taken aback. I finally understood what he meant by "Congratulations, you're reborn" in the video.

I pursed my lips, but was still a little suspicious. "Is that all?"

"That's all," he replied confidently. He cleared his throat and explained, "You should know that her mother got into that accident because of me. I can't just leave her."

I had heard Brenda talk about this matter.

Ryan's mother died giving birth to him. When he was five, his father, John Frost, married another woman. She was Jessica's mother, Lauren Wood.

Lauren was Ryan's stepmother, but treated Ryan as if he was her own.

She was even willing to sacrifice herself to save Ryan when the latter was in danger. This caused her to be in a coma all these years.

If that was the reason, then I felt that everything made sense.

I immediately felt relaxed, but still reminded, "Ryan, I believe you're just trying to repay your debts and only see her as your sister."

In the end, I threw the necklace into the storage room.

I was still probably a little suspicious and just chose to believe him temporarily. It could all come back one day and by then, I would have lost all trust.

That day came faster than I expected.

My degree was in fashion design. I also became an intern in the Design Department of the Frost Group.

Marrying Ryan had no effect on my career plan.

After four years, I became the deputy director of the Design Department.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming for dinner, Ms. Wilson?"

One day, when I was in the canteen at lunch, my university roommate, Jane Greenwood, walked coquettishly to me with food in her hands and then sat down opposite me.

"I'm in a rush to finish my designs after lunch."

Seeing that she was looking at me meaningfully, I asked helplessly, "What do you want?"

"I've heard the Human Resources Department say that the candidate for the director of the Design Department has been chosen." A smile appeared on Jane's face. "I bet it's definitely you, so I came to congratulate you on the promotion in advance. Let's get rich together!"

"Nothing's for certain until I get the letter of appointment. Keep your voice down."

The director of the Design Department had resigned a week or so ago. Everyone said that I would probably be the candidate for the position.

I was confident as well, but I knew it wasn't for certain.

"What do you mean not for certain? You're the CEO's wife!" Jane lowered her voice for the second half of the sentence. That was because Ryan and I didn't tell anyone about our relationship. The outsiders only knew that Ryan loved his wife, but they didn't know that I was his wife.

Jane then began complimenting me again. "Everyone could see your achievements ever since you began working for this company. You're responsible for both the brand designs and custom designs. Countless other companies want you to work for them. Why wouldn't the Frost Group promote you?"

As soon as Jane finished speaking, both of our phones rang. It was the letter of appointment.

When she saw the title of the email, her eyes lit up, and began reading it excitedly. A while later, she began furrowing her brows and was a little mad. "Who the hell's Jessica Frost?"

I was completely dumbfounded.

I looked at the email over and over again as if I was trying to confirm something.

I wasn’t seeing things.

Jessica suddenly became the director of the Design Department, my superior.

“Do you know her, Charlotte?”

Jane could tell that something wasn’t right. She reached out and waved her in front of my eyes as she tried to guess what was going on.

I put down my phone. “Yes, she’s Ryan’s stepsister that I told you about before.”

After graduation, my roommates went their separate ways. But Jane and I had been good friends throughout university. We promised each other to stay in Jelaston and not go anywhere else.

“Fuck! So she got this position because she’s Ryan’s stepsister?” cursed Jane.

I was rendered speechless.

‘She’s probably more than just his stepsister,’ I said inwardly.

“Is Ryan out of his mind?” Jane continued to complain. “Why does she get to be the director? I’ve never heard of her in the design industry before, but Ryan just gave her the position of director. What about you? What are you to him...”

“Alright, alright.” I interrupted and said softly, “It’s not important at all. He’ll give it to me when he wants to.”

‘There would be someone else giving me this position even if he didn’t want to,’ I added inwardly.

We were in the canteen, so it wasn’t necessary to say some things out loud.

It was to prevent others from using my words to make a fuss.

Jane knew me well enough to know what I was thinking about.

After leaving the canteen, she looked around to make sure that there was no one around us and then asked sneakily, “Have you got other plans?”

I cocked my brows. “Have a guess.”

“Please tell me, Charlotte.”

“Kind of. But I haven’t made up my mind yet.”

I had never switched jobs over the past four years.

The Frost Group was more like my comfort zone.

I needed a strong push or something to happen before I made up my mind to leave.

After returning to my office, I went back to the designing of the New Year’s limited edition and didn’t have a nap at all.

This used to be a director’s job, but since the director resigned, it became the deputy director’s job. I had no choice but to speed things up.

“Charlotte, here’s your coffee.”

When it was nearly two o’clock in the afternoon, my assistant, Nancy Lister, knocked on the door, walked into the room, and placed a cup of coffee on my table.

“Thank you.” I smiled.

She looked at my design and put on a puzzled face. “Charlotte, how can you still be so calm? I’ve heard that the new director didn’t even need to go through any procedures and just took the director’s position. Aren’t you mad?”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or smile and was at a loss for words.

‘Aren’t I mad? Of course, I’m mad. But there’s no way that I would say anything to my subordinates,’ I thought.

“Listen to me, everyone...” The special assistant’s voice sounded outside. His name was Gary.

I could see everyone that was happening outside through the French window.

Ryan was wearing a tailored dark suit with one hand in his pocket. Him standing there alone gave others a cold feeling.

With Jessica next to him, the two of them looked like a perfect match.

She looked elegant and graceful. She looked at the man next to her as if asking for help.

Ryan frowned impatiently, but didn’t say anything.

He then said indifferently, “This is the new director of the Design Department, Jessica Frost. I hope you all will get along with her in the future.”

Jessica then gave Ryan a coquettishly look. “What’s up with the straight face?” She then said with a gentle smile, “Don’t listen to him. I’m very easygoing. I won’t set any strict rules. I’m new here, so if there’s anything that you think I haven’t done well enough, you’re welcome to talk to me.”

With the CEO backing her up, there obviously wouldn’t be any problems.

Nancy couldn’t help but pout her lips. “Looks like she does have friends in high places. Look, is this an awards ceremony or something? Congratulations on winning the 'Getting Something for Nothing' award?”

I was in a bad mood at the beginning, but after hearing her sarcastic words, I couldn’t help but laugh.

Outside my office, Ryan led Jessica to the door of the director’s office.

“Alright, alright, what else have you got to worry about? Who would dare to come over with that cold face of yours around?” Jessica pushed Ryan intimately. Her words might be disdainful, but she still had a big smile on her face.

I picked up a cup of coffee and took a sip. ‘So bitter.’

Knock! Knock!

After being pushed out of Jessica’s office, Ryan came to mine.

I stared at him as if wanting to see through his thoughts.

“I’ll make you another cup of coffee.” Nancy quickly left the room.

Ryan walked into my office slowly and closed the door. He then explained casually, “This is her first job, so she’s a little nervous. That’s why she asked me to back her up.”

“Really?” I asked with a smile. “I couldn’t tell.”

Jessica first asked the CEO of the company to introduce her to everyone and then used some simple interactions to make others think that she had a complicated relationship with Ryan.

Although she said that she was “easygoing”, it was still hard for people to behave casually around her with Ryan backing her up.

“Alright, she’s a few years older than you, but you’re her senior in the company. You’re better than her at designing and people of this department would obey you more.”

Ryan walked behind me and gently massaged my shoulders trying to comfort me. “You don’t need to worry about her. You just have to make sure that no one bullies her. Is that alright?”

This was the first time that I found it hard to control my temper in front of Ryan.

I pushed his hand away, stood up, and asked straightforwardly, “If it’s really like what you said, why is she the director and not me?”

As soon as I said those words, I realized that I had been too straightforward.

Even Ryan, who had been calm and indifferent, was surprised by my question.

During the three years that we were married, we hadn’t been all lovey-dovey, but we still respected each other. We hadn’t argued nor had I lost my temper, so he probably thought I didn’t have any temper.

However, I didn’t regret asking such a question.

If the director was someone who was more capable than me, then I wouldn’t have any problems with that. After all, I didn’t mind someone who was more capable than me being in a higher position than me.

But now, that the position of the director was given to Jessica, wouldn’t it be normal for me to ask about it?

This was the first time that Ryan saw me being so sharp. He pursed his thin lips. “Is this what you’re angry about, Charlotte?”

“Am I not allowed to be angry?”

I could pretend to be calm in front of others, but if I had to hide my feelings in front of my husband, then this marriage would be a total failure.

“Why so childish?” Ryan picked up a remote and turned the French window into ground glass. He then reached out and pulled me into his arms. “The whole of the Frost Group is yours, why do you care so much about a job position?”

“The Frost Group is yours, not mine.”

Only this job really belonged to me.

He raised my chin a little and said seriously, “We’re married, is it really necessary to separate what’s yours and what’s mine?”

“Then how about you give me some shares?” I smiled.

I kept my eyes on him and didn’t want to miss anything.

To my surprise, I got nothing.

He just cocked his brows. “How much do you want?”

“10%.”

This was a really big demand.

After Ryan and I were married, he took over the Frost Group. The company then expanded multiple times under his control. Even 1% of the shares would be worth hundreds of millions.

I didn’t expect him to agree to my request, so I just said a random number.

“Okay,” he said.

Ryan almost agreed instantly and didn't hesitate at all.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, curved my lips, and locked gazes with him. "Are you really willing to give me 10% of the company's shares?"

His eyes were clear. "I'm giving the shares to you and not some outsider."

At that moment, I had to admit that money was really good at proving loyalty.

All the emotions that I had suppressed during the morning had finally eased.

As if trying to prove something, I asked with a smile, "What about Jessica? Are you willing to give her shares?"

He fell silent for a moment and then gave me a definite answer. "No."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. All I can give her is the director's position."

Ryan pulled me into his arms and said in a warm and gentle voice, "I'll get Gary to bring the share transfer agreement in the afternoon. From today onwards, you're one of the Frost Group's shareholders. Everyone else will be working for you."

"What about you?" I asked with a smile since I was in a better mood.

He cocked his brows. "What?"

"Are you working for me?"

"Of course." He smiled and rubbed my head. He then leaned in and whispered in my ear, "I'm at your service both in and out of bed."

I blushed at those words and then glared at him.

This was what Ryan was like. He looked like a serious man, cold and distant, but his words could make someone blush easily.

Seeing that my mood had improved, he looked at his watch. "I've got a meeting to go to. It's the weekend tomorrow, let's head back to the Frost family's residence tonight and have dinner with Grandpa. I'll wait for you in the car park."

"Okay." I obviously wasn't going to refuse. I gave it some thought and made a decision. "Honey, I have a surprise for you tonight."

A few days ago, due to his lie about the necklace, I wasn't sure if I should tell him about me being pregnant.

But now that he could tell the difference in importance between me and Jessica, I felt that I shouldn't keep such a matter a secret anymore.

"What surprise?" Ryan was very curious and wanted to know the answer right away.

"I'll tell you when I get off work!" I went on my tiptoes and kissed him on the lips.

After doing so, I went back to work and didn't talk to him anymore.

After Ryan had left, I focused my attention on the designs.

Not knowing how long had passed, someone knocked on the door of my office again.

"Come in," I said without raising my head.

"Am I disturbing you, Charlotte?" Jessica's gentle voice sounded.

"A little," I replied honestly.

I didn't like being interrupted during work.

An awkward expression appeared on Jessica's face. She then said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I just found out that the director of the Design Department should have been yours. I accidentally took your position, so I thought I'd come and apologize."

"It's alright."

Ryan had already made up for it.

10% of the Frost Group's shares was something I couldn't earn in my whole life working as the director of the Design Department.

My calmness and indifference seemed to have surprised Jessica.

"Are you sure you're alright with this? If you feel uncomfortable about it, you can just tell me. I can switch to another department. I don't want to be unhappy because of this." She walked casually to the sofa and sat down.

"I'm fine, Jessica. You can stay in the Design Department."

Actually, I was just concerned about her causing trouble in other departments. I also didn't want the shares that I just got to be worth nothing.

If Jessica was in the Design Department, I could at least make sure that nothing went wrong.

"That's good to hear. We're a family, so you can just tell me if you have any problems. Don't keep everything to yourself." Jessica acted like a caring sister. She caressed her hair and said in a soft voice, "Ryan already said that I could choose any position in the company anyway. He felt that I hadn't worked for so long, so it doesn't really matter which department I go to, it's all the same anyway."

I wondered if I was too sensitive or something, but her words made me feel very uncomfortable.

Jessica made it sound like she was the one closest to Ryan and she was his wife.

"Ms. Wilson." Gary saw the door to my office was open, so he knocked and walked in straight after. He then passed the agreement to me. "There are two copies. You can check it and sign it if there aren't any problems. Mr. Frost has already signed it. You can keep one copy for yourself."

Ryan was really a man of his word.

"Okay." I opened the agreement and quickly read through it before signing my name and passing one copy back to Gary. I then smiled politely. "Thank you."

"Is that a share transfer agreement?" Jessica seemed to have seen the cover of the agreement.

At an angle where I couldn't see, she lost her elegance and her nails were digging deep into the palm of her hand.

Only after hearing Jessica's voice did Gary turn around. He was a little surprised to see her. "Sorry, I didn't see you there Ms. Frost. I won't disturb you anymore. I need to get this agreement back to Mr. Frost."

He didn't answer Jessica's question at all and quickly left the room.

Disbelief appeared in Jessica's eyes. "Did Ryan give your shares of the company?"

"I don't think there's a need to report such matters to Ms. Frost, right?"

After the matter of the necklace, I had a mixture of feelings towards Jessica.

It seemed that I couldn't pretend nothing had happened.

"Charlotte, why do I feel that you have a grudge against me?" Jessica stood up with a helpless expression on her face. "I didn't know if it was the necklace or the matter of the position this time that made you dislike me, but you have to believe me that I've never wanted to take anything from you. I'm not interested in such things either."

Looking at how aboveboard she was, my mind was in a little bit of a mess.

In the evening, I dug out the pregnancy test report from inside the cake and placed it in my bag.

I was prepared to head downstairs and tell Ryan that he was going to be a father.

The two of us had a child.

Thinking of how Ryan was going to react to the news and the child in my womb, I couldn't help but increase my pace a little.

I couldn't wait to share the surprise with him.

The elevator headed straight to the underground car park and I quickly found my way to the black Maybach.

Ryan's tall figure was leaning against the car and waiting for me patiently.

I pounced into his arms and could smell the unique scent on him. "Honey, I haven't kept you waiting for long, have I?"

"Not at all." He didn't pull me into his arms like before. Instead, he pushed me away uneasily. "Let's get into the car first."

"Wait, let me tell you the surprise first." I stopped him.

"What is it?"

He was no longer looking forward to the answer like he was in the afternoon. Instead, he seemed a little distracted.

I frowned but didn't overthink things. I looked into his dark eyes and said seriously, "Ryan, you're going to be..."

"Ryan, why aren't you getting into the car?"

The passenger side window was suddenly lowered and a voice cut me off.

At that moment, I just happened to lock gazes with Jessica, who was sitting in the car.

I was stunned as I looked at Ryan. I wanted an explanation.

However, Jessica had beaten Ryan to it. She said in a soft voice, "I've sent my car to the garage for maintenance, Charlotte. I'm going to the Frost family's residence as well, so I thought I'd ask Ryan to give me a ride. You definitely wouldn't mind, right?"