Chapter 74 No One Can Mess With


    You


    A knock sounded at the door. Liam and Celeste didn''t budge. They looked a mess, and the apartment was trashed-no way they were answering.


    Then a voice called out, "Mr. and Mrs. Harlow? Are you in there?"


    Liam froze. Before he could tell Celeste to stay put, she shot up like a jack-in- the-box and opened the door.


    "Jesus, Mrs. Harlow, what happened to your face?" The guy, Dominic Turner, was in histe twenties, tall andnky, looking gentle and refined, with a neat ponytail and exuding an artistic air. His eyes widened when he saw her swollen face.


    Celeste''s eyes flickered. Instantly, a cruel n formed in her mind to teach Alistair a lesson.


    You fool. Think you can take us on?


    "Being a stepmom is hell," she wailed, clutching Dominic''s arm. "I don''t know what


    I did, but Alistair just has it out for me."


    "Alistair? Mr. Harlow''s kid from his first marriage?" Dominic frowned.


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    Chapter 74 No One Can Mess With You


    Celeste nodded, sniffling.


    **) 19 min left


    His expression turned dark. "Don''t worry, Mrs. Harlow. I won''t let anyone mess with you two.".


    With a smug smile, Celeste saw Dominic off. Just picturing Alistair lying broken- limbed and discarded on the street made her giddy with satisfaction. Spinning around, she crowed. "Too soft-hearted to teach your own kid a lesson? I''ve got it covered." Her triumph vanished as she snapped, "Liam, what the hell are you doing?"


    Liam, sweating buckets, peeked out from the balcony until Dominic was out of sight. Then he stuffed clothes into a bag and yanked Celeste toward the door. "We gotta get out of here- now!" His face was ghost-white, like a monster was on his tail.


    He''d been clinging to a sliver of hope that he could skate by, but Dominic''s appearance shattered that illusion. It hit him like a sledgehammer-Alistair knew everyst detail, including the dirty secret he''d been so sure was buried for good.


    Alistair had promised a week, but Dominic showing up was Alistair''s way of sending a message loud and clear.


    He wasn''t bluffing-this time, he meant business.


    Celeste shoved him away. "Are you out of your mind? Why on earth should we leave? It''s your precious son who ought to be the


    23:33


    (? 19 min (or one leaving. Humph, don''t tell me you''re feeling sorry for him. That brat who doesn''t know his ce deserves a good lesson, or he''ll think he can just trample all over us!"


    Liam tugged at her again. “Just leave with me. I''ll exinter."


    "Go by yourself!" Celeste crossed her arms. "I''m not going anywhere."


    While Liam''s end was in total chaos, Alistair had gotten back from his walk and was digging into his after-dinner fruit. The living room smelled amazing, all fresh watermelon. One bite, and the sweet, juicy flesh just melted in his mouth.


    Then it was bedtime, right on schedule. After Eloise fell asleep, Alistair and Caroline settled on opposite sides of the bed. For a


    while, neither said a word.


    Alistair might have looked calm, but he was definitely shaken up. He couldn''t stop thinking-about himself, about Caroline.


    Sure, things seemed okay on the surface today, but too much had gone down. There was no way he could just act like it was no big


    deal.


    Caroline shifted around, trying to getfortable. It was obvious she was wide awake, too. She must have been stressing over something, but he had no clue what.


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    19 min left


    Finally, Alistair couldn''t keep quiet. "Carol?"


    She answered right away, "Yeah?" No sign of sleepiness in her voice.


    "Don''t you ever worry about me?" He didn''t spell out what he meant. She was too smart for that-she knew exactly what he was getting at.


    Carolineughed, a little cocky, "If I couldn''t tell who''s who, I''d have been out of the game ages ago."


    She ran multiplepanies, dealing with all sorts of people every day. At first, some old-timers thought they could push her around because she was young and figured she was just riding her family''s coattails. But she taught them a lesson- they didn''t stand a chance against her.


    "But what if you''re wrong about me?" Alistair let out a long breath. "They say bad apples don''t fall far from the tree. Liam''s my dad, no matter what. He''s a selfish jerk. Aren''t you scared I''ll turn out just like him?"


    "Alistair, enough. Keep talking, and I''ll really lose it." Carolin at up, the silk nket sliding down to her waist. Her tone turned icy. "You really think I picked the wrong guy?"


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    Alistair stammered, "Sorry, that''s not... I didn''t mean..." But inside, he felt a wave of relief. He was so grateful to Caroline.


    You never really know what''s going on in someone else''s head. Even the best judge of character can make mistakes.


    Deep down, he wasn''t just confused by her trust-he was worried that once she knew about his dad, she''d start second-guessing whether he had inherited his dad''s despicability.


    Liam didn''t think twice about screwing over his own flesh and blood for a buck, so what chance did anyone else stand? He


    wed his way up thedder by stomping over his colleague,


    Owen Turner.


    He and Liam were rivals at work. He was a shoo-in for a promotion until a freak ident busted his leg. After that, the guy went off the rails, drowning his sorrows in booze and bad decisions. Liam ended up with the raise and promotion. Owen had no clue Liam was behind his downfall. In fact, since Liam was the first one to help him after the ident, Owen thought they were practically brothers. Owen was not the problem, though. His son, Dominic, was a real badass. He had a cold, sinister vibe and a group of loyal henchmen. Also, influenced by his father, he held Liam in great respect.


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    If he ever found out Liam was the one who wrecked his old man, Liam would end


    up miserably.


    Alistair didn''t even have to threaten Liam. All he did was show him


    Owen''s name on his phone, and Liam almost had a heart attack.


    Today, Alistair pulled a few strings and dropped Dominic in Liam''sp as a "surprise.” Safe to say Liam wouldn''t be getting much shut-eye tonight.


    After what Reba put him through for six long years, there was no way Alistair was gonna let Liam off easy. That''d be way too good for him.


    Caroline wasn''t buying Alistair''s apology. Her voice was sharp as she snapped, "Alistair, cut the crap. I don''t wanna hear that nonsense again. You and Liam? You''re nothing alike. I''m not some idiot who can''t tell the difference." Then she changed the subject. "I''ve already got people watching the Whitfield family. Don''t sweat it. As long as I''m around, no one''s gonna mess with you."


    As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized how soft s'' ''d sounded. Her cheeks burned, but thank god it was pitch-ck. There was no way Alistair could see her blushing.


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