Mission: From Divorcee to Millionaire

He realized too late, and that's why he missed out on so much, wasted so much time. Cindy, hearing the story, promptly let go of Everett's leg and dashed over to bother little Mateo. Mateo turned red and tried to ignore her, but she was persistent, whispering all sorts of

sweet nonsense in his ear-a move clearly picked up from Jaime the jokester.

The three kids laughed and tussled as they climbed aboard the bus. Everett's dark eyes lingered on them, his gaze softening with warmth. Even though Alex didn't want to break this tender moment, she checked her watch and gently reminded him, "Mr. Everett, it's time to head to the airport."

"Right," he replied, taking one last, lingering look before turning away and bending to get into the car. The car slowly pulled away, distancing itself from the bus.

When Selena finally woke up, the morning sun was already high in the sky. Annoyed, she threw a few lazy punches into the air, more for show than effort. Her whole body ached, especially... in certain areas.

She recalled last night's absurdity. That man, trying to prove he wasn't "old," had gone all out until she was practically begging for mercy. Thank goodness he was off on a business trip now.

Selena sighed with relief, grabbed her phone, and video-called little Mateo. She'd slipped a phone into his backpack the day before. Within moments, the screen was filled with the cheerful faces of three kids.

They crowded together, excitedly telling her they'd climbed part of the mountain and were now taking a break, their cheeks bright and flushed. Seeing this, Selena felt at ease and smiled, "Make sure to have fun, and send me a picture from the top tonight, okay?" "Okay!" Mateo chirped. Cindy piped up, "Aunt Selena, I'll take a cool pic of Mateo for you! When we grow up, you can marry him off to me!"

"Boys don't get married off; they marry someone!" Mateo corrected her sternly.

Cindy's eyes lit up, "So, Mateo, you're saying you'll marry me then?"

Mateo was at a loss for words.

Selena couldn't help but chuckle. Quiet types really do need a lively little spark to keep things interesting.

After a bit more chatting, Selena

reluctantly ended the call. Her

nightgown was neatly folded on the nightstand, As she began to feel a

.n

bit more herself, she wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, sat up, and slipped on a dress. Her skin felt refreshingly clean-Everett must've taken care of that. Henoveldrama

always did have a knack for being attentive...

Realizing her thoughts were drifting, Selena quickly snapped herself out of it. She couldn't let herself be charmed by him again!

Today was her uncle's discharge

day, so she drove over to pick him up. Brook had bounced back nicely under the doctor's care, and hearing about her reconciliation with Everett seemed to give him an extra boost. The cheerful news seemed to speed up his recovery.

The household staff whipped up a feast to celebrate his homecoming. Ricky also made it home early to join in. Uncle wanted to enjoy a few drinks, but Selena and Ricky teamed up to dissuade him. But since Selena didn't have to rush home to the kids and her husband was away, Ricky opened a bottle of wine for a light toast.

Selena knew her brother was just looking out for her, so she accepted. The siblings lounged on the sofa, chatting here and there, slowly getting a little tipsy. Selena, hugging a pillow, curled up pretending to nap. Ricky told the staff to tidy up a room, deciding she'd stay the night. As he turned, the TV suddenly flashed a breaking news alert, and the headlines made his eyes go wide.

The news sobered him up instantly. He hurried to wake Selena, "Sis, wake up, something's happened-"