Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

Andre was strolling when he suddenly came to a halt, and Noah, his assistant, quickly followed suit. Turning to face Noah, Andre's expression was stern. "Why are you telling me this now?" he asked.

Noah sighed and explained, "Boss, I tried to reach you this morning, but Henry was having a meltdown, and you sent me away. At lunchtime, I attempted again, but Henry was throwing another tantrum, and you weren't in the mood to listen. Just now, when I went to your office, I found out Henry had turned it into a disaster zone, scattering papers everywhere, and you were too busy dealing with that, so I didn't dare interrupt."

It was only after the little troublemaker, Henry, had left that Noah managed to quickly run through all the plans.

Thinking back on his hectic day, Andre felt his frustration rise, having nowhere to vent it, all thanks to his son.

He had made up his mind that for his next child, come what may, they'd be handed over to a nanny right from the start. Let the kid bond with the nanny instead!

As he opened his office door, he instructed, "Set a date for when the project kicks off and clear my schedule for it. As for the Collins family's proposal, put them on ice. Leave the documents; have Alice compile a progress report and send it to me. I'll decide after reviewing it. Oh, and with Mrs. Calder in her late pregnancy, keep an eye on Calder Corporation's matters for Mr. Calder."

"On it, sir."

With peace restored, Andre turned on his computer and focused on his work.

Meanwhile, at the mall,

Conner was dragging Annie along, under the pretense of shopping for kids' clothes, but he kept getting distracted by jewelry stores.

"Why are you checking out earrings? Is our little tiger planning on getting his ears pierced?" Annie teased.

Conner grinned, "Why not? When my son grows up, he can get his ears pierced and rock them." He was eyeing some diamond and tassel earrings, eager to take a closer look.

"You want our little tiger to sport diamonds and chains?" Annie asked, raising an eyebrow.

Conner gave it a thought and replied, "Why not? Who knows what'll be trendy twenty years from now?"

Annie rolled her eyes. "You keep browsing; I'm heading upstairs to the maternity store."

"Help me pick one out," Conner called after her.

"My taste isn't the best. The police department has a rule against wearing such jewelry, so I've never bought any."

Conner immediately put down the earrings and took Annie's hand, leading her upstairs. "Those things are too ordinary; none of them are worthy of our son."

Annie rolled her eyes again, pretending not to know he initially wanted to buy something for her.

"Annie, I remember the first time I saw you, you were wearing jewelry," Conner reminisced about the first time he saw her at a gala.

It was the first time he had shown interest in a woman, who was strikingly beautiful. The Andersons were desperate to get in the Nettleton family's good graces due to past incidents involving their eldest daughter and Emmery, fearing reprisal from the new head of the Nettletons. So, they dolled up their second daughter and brought her to the gala, hoping she'd find a well-off partner to protect her, should Conner target the Andersons. It was a parent's hope for a secure future for their child.Exclusive content © by Nô(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.

But their plan didn't go as expected when Conner took an interest in her.

The Anderson parents were on edge, worried about the pairing.

Maja, Annie's sister, warned her, "Annie, don't marry him. He's dangerous, a killer. He knows you're our pride and wants to use you against us."

"I'm a cop. Aren't you afraid of marrying an undercover officer?" Annie had mocked when she first heard Conner wanted to marry her.

Relaxed on the couch, legs crossed, Conner replied, "Love and hate, that drama's right up my alley."

Annie confronted him, "You want to marry me just to torment me and get back at my sister and parents?"

Lighting a cigarette, Conner stood and approached Annie, "That's an intriguing idea."

As Annie tried to leave, a guard blocked her way.

Annie glanced at the guard, and in one swift move, disarmed him, pointing his own gun at Conner. "You all know if this gun's loaded. You know who I am and if I can shoot." Conner just laughed, letting Annie leave the Nettleton estate.

Annie had anticipated all sorts of revenge plots from Conner. She even checked her car for tampering on her daily commutes. But in the end, not only was she fine, Conner had also protected ChapmanInc. and her folks.

Curiously, Angie asked her sister, "Maja, is it true Conner would kill without hesitation and use me to get back at our family? I've checked every case file, and no one's reported Conner. Plus, he protected our parents and uncles."

Maja insisted, "It's all a show. Annie, he's trying to make us think he's good, then he'll destroy us."

Annie was skeptical of her sister's warnings.

Once, while on a call in Newtown, Annie was the bait in a sting to catch a serial killer targeting women in short skirts. Dressed provocatively, she was stationed at a bar.

Soon, a charming man sat next to her, starting a conversation that spanned astronomy to history, all with humor.

Annie, admiring his knowledge,

didn't notice when he slipped a pill into her drink, which dissolved quickly. "Want to change venues? I have an art exhibit in the city center;

I could take you for dinner.

"Sure."

They clinked glasses, and Annie, thinking all was fine, took a sip.

A man watching from upstairs cursed her naivety, "She's too trusting, drinking anything handed to her."

"What do we do, boss?"

As Annie left, feeling dizzy and unsteady, she realized something was off.

The suspect, holding her close, whispered in her ear, "Officer Chapman, you're stunning, like a work of art. But you've seen my true face, and for that, I'm sorry."

Annie tried to alert her team, but she was too weak; everything blurred.

Before losing consciousness, she saw a group of men in black blocking the way and a man leading them, smoking a cigar.

Feeling relieved, her consciousness faded.

When she woke, she found herself in Conner's plush bed.

"How did I end up here?"

Conner replied, "I brought you here."

"What about the suspect?"

"Handed over to the police."

At the station, her colleagues were concerned, "Annie, you gave us a scare yesterday. You were carried off by someone from the Nettletons. How are you?" "And the suspect? He knew I was a cop and took me on purpose."

"He's in the hospital, fighting for his life."

"Fighting for his life?" Annie was puzzled.

Later, she saw the suspect, his hands severely burned, wrapped like a mummy.

She didn't need to ask who was responsible.

Meeting Conner again, she asked, "Why go after his hands?"

"Because he touched you."

"Why both hands?"

"Well, he held you with both hands."

Annie couldn't help but chuckle, "Thanks for yesterday."