Tangled Temptations

Half a month later.

Ravenna's husband's coal mine was turned upside down.

Five lives were lost four years ago, and the news was now broadcasted widely. The wealthy mine owner was immediately detained, facing at least 20 years in prison.

Ravenna's world was collapsing. She tried to see Mr. Brett, but was stopped by Donny.

Donny spoke solemnly, "Ms. Ravenna, Mr. Brett had long-term plans to cooperate with you. But we never knew your husband was involved in such dirty affairs. We have to cancel our plans."

Ravenna, though slow, sensed the unusual. But considering her status, she could never challenge Brett. All she could do was to beg for his leniency.

Donny smiled calmly. "Ms. Ravenna, have you ever thought about who you might have offended?"

Ravenna was stunned. After a while, she muttered, "It's Eloise."

Donny did not respond directly. He only said, "Mr. Brett's sister died young. All his affection is poured into Eloise. You should have thought twice before acting against us."

After saying that, Donny left.

Ravenna sat alone in the tearoom, feeling absolutely defeated. She picked up a cup of coffee. Her hands were shaking uncontrollably. She couldn't believe that after all her hard work, she was still losing to Eloise.

Eloise hadn't even lifted a finger, but she was left in a miserable state.

No, she couldn't let this happen! She had to save her husband Stuart, even if that meant begging Eloise.

Ravenna walked out of the tearoom into the rain. The initially hot early autumn weather was cooled down by the light rain.

At Eloise's mansion, the rain was light.

Eloise was sitting in the pavilion in the backyard, arranging flowers in a vase. The flowers were all planted by herself.

A servant came over and whispered, "Madam, there's a Ms. Ravenna who wishes to see you."

Eloise blinked lightly. She had seen the news today and guessed that Ravenna would come to beg, but she hadn't expected her to come so soon.

She smiled faintly and said, "Tell her I'm not here."

The servant nodded and left.

At the mansion gate, Ravenna was pacing anxiously, with an umbrella in her hand.

She desperately needed Eloise's help. She thought, despite their differences, they were old classmates. It wouldn't be hard for Eloise to lend a helping hand if she could swallow her pride.

From a distance, the servant came over with an umbrella.

"Ms. Ravenna, I'm sorry but our madam is not at home. Please come back another time!"

Ravenna knew this was just an excuse from Eloise. She was clearly at home.

Ravenna wouldn't give up. She abandoned her dignity and shouted at the gate, “Eloise! I know you're at home. Why won't you see me? ... Yes, I did wrong by revealing your secrets, but it didn't really affect you, did it? Do you have to ruin me to be happy?"noveldrama

The servant looked uncomfortable. "Ms. Ravenna, please don't make things difficult for us." If Mr. Harvey came home and saw this, he would definitely be furious.

Ravenna was so angry that she threw her umbrella away and began shaking the large, black, carved gate violently. She was shouting obscenities, "Eloise, come out! What are you playing dead for? Do you think you're better than me? Have you forgotten how you pursued Max?"

"You said that you would love Max forever!

“Hah, you're just like me, only in love with power!

"You don't love Harvey; I can't see a shred of love in your eyes for him! Eloise,

this is your retribution. You always step on me, and now your retribution is here."

...

Ravenna knew Eloise wouldn't help her, so she decided to bare all.

Eloise heard her. She calmly ordered, "Have security remove her."

Ravenna was being dragged away by security. She was acting like a shrew in the rain, spewing obscenities.

"Keep pretending! Eloise, you've lost the joy of being a woman. I bet you'd feel more when you're with Max than when you're with Harvey."

...

A gold Bentley slowly approached.

The window was half down. Harvey heard every word Ravenna said clearly. He had a handsome face, devoid of any expression.

Ravenna turned her head and saw him. She rushed over to bang on the car door. The rain was pouring into her mouth as she desperately said, "Attorney Horigan, please help me! Can you ask Eloise to spare Stuart? I'll do anything for you."

She believed she had some charm, enough to attract a man's pity. She felt that the man in front of her wasn't satisfied in his marriage and she could make him happy.

The gold Bentley stopped. The windshield wipers were constantly moving. Inside the car, Harvey wore an expensive suit, looking exceptionally noble. He lit a cigarette and said coldly, "Your husband's troubles are all my doing. Ms. Ravenna, I'm not Max. I don't collect trash."

He found Ravenna disgusting.

Harvey put out his cigarette. He then ordered the security guard, "What are you standing there for? Get her out of the way. She's blocking my way."

Ravenna was stunned.

Harvey's car slowly started moving. As he passed her, he suddenly stopped again. Inside the car, his side profile was handsome. The words he spoke were cold and ruthless. "I care a lot about Eloise. If Ms. Ravenna continues to upset her, then I won't mind destroying what Ms. Ravenna cares about the most."

What Ravenna cared about the most was Max. She had a love-hate relationship with him. If Max were to fall from grace, Harvey thought, that would be the worst thing for Ravenna.

The car window went up.

The aloof man, maneuvered his car slowly into the mansion. Perhaps he was going to comfort Eloise.

Ravenna screamed in frustration. It was her misfortune. Why was the world comforting Eloise!

...

The golden Bentley came to a halt.

Harvey sat inside, quietly smoking a cigar. Ravenna's words still echoed in his

ears.

"Keep pretending! Eloise, you've lost the joy of being a woman. I bet you'd feel more when you're with Max than when you're with Harvey."

He shouldn't care, but he did. For a man, especially a man as privileged as him,

he cared a lot about not being able to bring happiness to his wife.

He also knew that Max could not forget Eloise. They shared 4 years of memories. Good or bad, they had their sweet moments.

As the cigar burned out, he stepped out of the car and walked straight towards the backyard.

Eloise was still fiddling with a vase of flowers. Seeing Harvey come in, she asked softly, "Did she leave?"

Harvey undid his suit button, took off his coat, and gently draped it over her slim shoulders. "It's chilly. Why are you sitting outside?"

Eloise smiled. "It's quite comfortable outside."

He leaned in to kiss her. Eloise let him kiss her, perhaps to make him happy. She climbed onto his back. Later, he sat down on a chair, and she sat in his lap.

The coat on her shoulders fell to the ground, and his hand slipped under her dress. She gently bit his shoulder, whispering, "Let's go to the bedroom."

But Harvey withdrew his hand, lightly patting her waist, teasing her, "What are you thinking Mrs. Horigan! Where are Linda and Darrien?"

Eloise guessed his thoughts. She gently leaned on his shoulder, softly stroking his handsome face. "Mom and dad took them back. They said they wanted to give us some time to cultivate our feelings."

Harvey wrapped his arm around her waist, and both of them fell into silence.

In fact, their feelings for each other were pretty good, and they got along well. He was considerate, and she was gentle, but their relationship lacked some passion.

It was even more mundane than an old married couple.

But there was nothing wrong with that.

...

Half a month later.

Ravenna's coal tycoon husband was confirmed to be sentenced for 20 years. As

the current wife, Ravenna received about 500 million dollars in cash, a far cry from her extravagant lifestyle.

Eloise didn't kick her when she was down. However, she didn't expect to run into Ravenna again at the Miles family gathering.

Eloise was about to start a movie. She was surrounded by a bunch of young, good-looking actors, all wanting to work with Ms. Olea.

Veronica, usually kept under strict rules by Riley, loosened up completely tonight. Seeing such a group of handsome men, she touched her face, regretting not taking better care of her looks.

Eloise whispered for her to restrain herself. If something really happened, Riley

would most certainly give her a hard time.

Veronica was about to clarify when she caught sight of a familiar face out of the corner of her eye. She whispered to Eloise, “Ravenna is here. She's really capable. Her husband is still in prison, but she's already hooked up with a big shot in the entertainment industry."

Eloise casually glanced up and saw Ravenna in a silver dress, arm in arm with a portly man, walking towards them. She had lost a lot of weight, which added a touch of fragile beauty to her. She was quite appealing to men.

At this moment, Ravenna's gaze was fixed on Eloise. It was a clear look of resentment.

Eloise wasn't afraid of her. She whispered to Veronica, "The producer she's with,

his movies have been flopping for a few years now. He's probably after the money Ravenna got."

Veronica admired her for the information. Eloise smiled lightly. "Ms. Olea told me when we were having tea the other day."

While they were talking, Ravenna sat down at a far-off table. Eloise ignored her

and continued mingling. At 10 o'clock, she told Veronica, "You stay and have fun. I'm going home!"

Veronica was quite surprised. "Is Harvey really that strict?"

Eloise gave a small smile. Actually, it wasn't that Harvey demanded her to go

home early, but ever since the university reunion, she had noticed his insecurity,

and she understood.

Their relationship was already quite mundane. After seeing that video of Max, he became somewhat possessive. Eloise still felt that. their relationship, at least one person should be normal. So even though he was possessive, she still compromised.

Whenever he wanted, she never refused.

Eloise said goodbye and left first.

The Miles family mansion had a long foyer. A servant handed her her coat. Behind

her, she heard Ravenna's voice. "Eloise!"

Eloise turned around to see Ravenna with her haggard face. She furrowed her brows. "Ms. Ravenna, is there something you need?"

Ravenna held a slim lady's cigarette in her hand. She slowly lit it, took a long look

at Eloise, and then finally said, "Eloise, you win! My husband is in prison. From

now on I can only rely on myself."

Eloise smiled faintly.

Ravenna took a deep drag on her cigarette. "I know you're happy! You did it for

Veronica, right? She was hurt so badly back then. As her good friend, you must

have been hurt too! Now you've gotten what you wanted."

She suddenly squinted her eyes and laughed. "I'm just curious. You obviously don't love Harvey anymore. Why are you still with him?

You don't lack money, do you? The Noland family could take care of you! You have such a powerful Brett. What are you afraid of?"

Eloise calmly responded, "Ravenna, do you think everyone is as self-centered as

you? Harvey is not just my husband. He's also the father of my children." Ravenna laughed. The tears were streaming down her face.

The father of her children... Indeed! That was Eloise's true feelings. Was Eloise

really happy? Eloise was with Harvey just for the kids, nothing more than a compromise. Eloise wasn't any better off than herself, was she?

Eloise didn't want to deal with her. She turned to leave, but as she turned around,

she saw Harvey standing at the door.

He was quietly looking at her. His eyes were dark, like a thick fog that couldn't be dispersed on a cloudy day...