Jacob looked overwhelmed as he sprang to his feet, exclaiming in surprise, "Oh, Mr. Ahmed! Your Oskian is so fluent!"Hamed smiled. "I've been in Oskia for a long while on business. I'm basically a friend of the nation!"Hamed naturally avoided saying that he studied in Oskia, or he'd have to lie more if they pressed the issue.Still, Jacob nodded. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Ahmed. I'm Jacob Wilson—Charlie's father-in-law!"Elaine hurried over right then. "I'm Elaine. Charlie's mother-in-law."Hamed then turned toward Claire and smiled. "And I'm guessing this angel is Mrs. Wade!"Claire had a hunch about who Hamed was, and knew that everything he said would be a lie.After all, anyone who 'knew' Charlie would know his true heritage.Still, she didn't let it show and flashed a polite smile. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Ahmed. I'm Claire."Hamed nodded politely. "I've always been grateful to Master Wade for helping me with the Feng Shui in my business, and I guess it's fate that brought u

Getting up, Charlie went over to give Hamed a heads-up before leaving the restaurant with Claire.Hani then approached them with a smile. "Mr. and Mrs. Wade, how does playing with stingrays sound? They often flock around the northern beach.""Stingrays?" Claire blurted in surprise. "Are they domesticated?""No, but they are a local species," Hani smiled, shaking his head. "And there are plenty of them in the waters around the island. They'd be playing or feeding during this hour, and return to the depths when it gets dark. So now's the best time to see them."Claire nodded and asked, "Can you take us there?""Of course, no problem!" Hani smiled. "We can ride a golf cart over. Allow me to drive."Claire finally smiled, and she chirped happily, "Thank you so much!"With that, she and Charlie got into the golf cart Hani used to ferry guests, the electric vehicle speeding steadily over the cobblestone path on the island as they headed straight for the northern beach.The island was

With that in mind, Charlie's position in Tanya's concert crew as her Feng Shui consultant was probably bullshit.Claire already suspected that the masked dancer whom Tanya kissed so passionately on stage was Charlie himself. However, she was convinced that a megastar like Tanya wouldn't be interested in some Feng Shui consultant like her husband, because she was a titan—if not positively divine, in comparison.But in hindsight, the one who was positively divine was Charlie and never Tanya!Now, she and Charlie just arrived at Cheval Blanc Randheli, but Tanya's coming tomorrow as well.It goes without saying that she must be coming for Charlie too.It was her only trip with Charlie, and could well be the last.Never could she have expected that another competitor was about to show up, and one who was way more wealthy and influential at that.How was she supposed to feel good about this?Still, seeing the surprise on Charlie's face, she asked, "Ms. Sweet is coming too? What a coi

That night, no staff member of Cheval Blanc Randheli could sleep.They were all busy setting up towering arches and walls of fresh flowers, as well as rolling out the red carpet and cleaning up every inch of the island. Then, come tomorrow morning, the red carpet will be extended straight to the hotel.Bernard Arnault had just finished his seabed spa session with his wife Cindy Watts, and was complaining as he took the elevator upstairs. "Why would Tanya Sweet want to travel to the Maldives now, of all times? We'd be hearing fans screaming from one end of the island to the other. It's going to be so annoying.""What's so annoying about that?" Cindy replied noncommittally. "We're just doing business. The guest can afford to pay us, then we show them proper hospitality."Bernard dissed, "Sure, and I want the super-luxurious island resort I spent millions on to become a noisy fanmeet venue. It's just terrible. She has so much influence that we can't turn her down, and we even have to

That night, Charlie found actual peace for once, feeling the dank sea breeze and listening to the splashes of ocean waves.Claire had already fallen asleep beside him much earlier, keeping her back to him so he didn't notice anything strange.Early next morning, she quietly got out of bed while Charlie was still asleep.Although she did her best not to make a sound, Charlie still quickly sensed it and woke up.After leaving the bedroom, Claire found a door facing the ocean in the living room and the bedroom, revealing the azure ocean once it was opened.As she stepped out of the bedroom and onto the balcony, she found that it had a handrail made of raw wood and offered decent privacy.With the entire villa built over an islet, she could hear the waves splashing right beneath.There were two beach chairs outside, and a shallow pool outside.When Claire stepped out, the horizon was just brightening and the sun was yet to be seen.She sat on the beach chair, staring blankly at th