"Let''s reintroduce ourselves. My English name is ine, but my real name is Samuel Irwin."


    Everything around them seemed toe to a standstill.


    Selena stared at him,pletely taken aback.


    She had always assumed that ine approached her because she reminded him


    of someone significant in his life. Never did she imagine they shared the same


    At this moment, Selena couldn''t brush it off as mere coincidence.


    After a long silence, she finally found her voice, though it was shaky. "You... you''re my father''s..."


    She struggled to say the words, finding them hard to believe.


    In her memories, her parents were deeply in love. How could there be... an affair?


    ine chuckled softly. "Don''t get the wrong idea. Your dad doesn''t have any secret kids."


    "I''m your uncle."


    Uncle??


    This meant they were a generation apart, so...


    Selena swallowed hard. "Then you''re... my grandfather''s illegitimate child?"


    But considering her grandfather''s age, it didn''t make sense for him to have a child ine''s age.


    She waspletely baffled.


    ine sighed. "Is it that journalist''s imagination of yours?"


    He decided to stop being mysterious. He pulled up a chair and sat down, his intense eyes meeting hers.


    "I have no blood rtion to your grandfather. You, your grandfather, and your father aren''t rted by blood."


    Selena''s hands clenched tightly.


    "Are you saying... I''m adopted?"


    ine nodded gently, confirming her suspicion.


    The Irwin family was once a thriving dynasty, but betrayal from close friends led to their downfall.


    ine was just a child, fleeing with newborn Selena to keep her safe. He entrusted her to Selena''s parents, who were a distant branch of the Irwin family.


    Wyatt and Tasha wanted Selena


    Selena never imagined she had such a hidden past.


    It felt surreal.


    She swallowed a few times. "Then... after you handed me over to Mom and Dad, what happened to you?"


    "Me?"


    ine smiled.


    He had fought his way up from nothing, using his cunning and grit to reach where he was now. Everything he had in France was earned through blood and sweat.


    More than once, he narrowly escaped death.


    Maybe he was too crafty for even the Grim Reaper, so he pulled through.


    He didn''t go into detail, just said, "I got lucky. Even after being betrayed, I survived."


    Betrayed...


    "Who betrayed you?"


    The smile on ine''s lips suddenly vanished.


    He lowered his eyes, staring at his ring finger, twisting it absentmindedly.


    After a pause, he quietly said, "My partner."


    His tone was light, but Selena sensed his deep-seated anger and the sadness he tried to hide.


    Suddenly, she was at a loss for words.


    Yet ine still managed a smile. "Guess it runs in the family, both getting


    betrayed by the ones we trusted."


    Selenaughed along with him.


    As theyughed, tears unexpectedly welled up in her eyes.


    They were fools.


    The biggest fools in the world.


    Through her teary eyes, ine spoke again,


    Shoe met


    now."


    "Staying here will only bring you pain."