My Beloved

Han Luo wore a casual white dress with cherry blossoms printed on it. She loosely tied her hair with a pink hairband and wore a pair of platinum earrings designed with a small rose. She wore a pair of casual white lacy sandals and checked herself top to bottom before heading out.

The car of Jared's mother was waiting in front of the house. It was a black sedan. Han Luo walked closer and greeted her. "Hello Mrs. Moore, how are you?"

Jared's mother Mrs. Moore is a friendly person. She has pure English blood running through her veins. She and Jared look almost the same.

She beamed heartily at the sight of the beautiful white fairy and greeted her back, "I'm good, sweetheart. How are you?"

"I'm fine. Thank you for picking me up." Han Luo sat on the back seat.

"Oh, cut it out, sweetheart. You are too polite." After she got in the car, Mrs. Moore started the engine and headed out.

Jared looked at Han Luo in a daze for a couple of seconds before coming back to his senses. He asked, "Why did you skip classes? It's unlike you." He realized that his heart was beating faster. He tried to control it.

"I thought that I needed a break." She replied casually.

Jared immediately apologized, "Sorry to bother you when you were resting. Is it too hard to handle studying, dancing, and modeling at the same time?"

Han Luo stated, "Not at all. I was told to take only one job once a month but if I like the project, I work on it even if I have to work more than twice in a month."

Jared was puzzled. He questioned her, "Why are you taking so much pressure at such a young age? Isn't modeling just a hobby for you? You can do it when you are free. You will have plenty of time to do this after growing up."

Han Luo gave him a slight smile. "Maybe you would, but I don't. I will be busy with our company projects once I grow up. I won't be able to do what I want to do. That's why, as long as I'm still free, I want to do it as much as I can."

"Company?" Jared suddenly remembered that Han Luo's family was in business for generations. "Oh, I forgot that you are an heiress. No wonder you always have a princess vibe around you. By the way, you got a nice house. Judging by you live in Bishop's Avenue, you must be filthy rich. I can understand your pressure now."

Han Luo cleared his misunderstanding, "Oh, this house isn't mine. My house is a bit smaller. This is big brother Yuan's house."

Jared froze and took his time to digest the news. To confirm that he heard right, he asked her, "Are you saying that you stayed at Yuan's house?"

"Yes, I went to his house last night and stayed over. Mom likes it when I stay at their house," she answered without hesitation not knowing what it did to Jared.

"…" Jared opened his mouth to say something but was unable to do so. 'Mom… She doesn't have a mother. It means she calls Yuan's mother 'mom'. I heard some rich Asian people get engaged from birth. Are they engaged too?'

Mrs. Moore noticed the awkwardness and decided to help her son. She asked Han Luo, "Sweetheart, do you have a mother? Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to be rude. I heard that your mother had a car accident."

Han Luo agreed with her, "You didn't hear wrong Mrs. Moore. We indeed had a car accident and mommy died. I call big brother Yuan's mother 'mom'."

Mrs. Moore became a bit curious. "Is that so? Why do you call her 'mom'?"

Han Luo patiently explained, "It's because she is my mommy's best friend and she practically raised me since I was a child." Han Luo smiled sweetly. "Mom took great care of me. Sometimes, she cares about me more than big brother Yuan."

Mrs. Moore quickly caught the intimate way she called the other boy. She inquired, "Big brother Yuan? That's how you call her son? Are you relatives?"

Han Luo denied flatly. "Oh no, we are not related in any way. We grew up together. Even though we are not related, I call him big brother. I think most of the Asians are like this."

Mrs. Moore remembered something and shared it with Han Luo, "Oh, so that's what it is. I know a Philippine family. They are our neighbors. Their daughter is only six years old. She calls Jared 'brother'. She is so adorable."

Han Luo added, "We also call neighbor brothers and relatives' friends 'brother' or 'sister'. Big brother Yuan is my cousin's best friend. That's how we got acquainted." 

"I see," Mrs. Moore muttered. 'My son, you have a long way to go. Good luck!'

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In the meantime, Mo Zhen was having a chat with his wife. He asked again, "You want me to sign a contract with Luo'er?"

"That's right. Mo Corporation always launches new products every month. Our Luo'er can be a part of it. Once a month won't be a big deal," Ma Rui was sitting on Mo Zhen's lap and told him her plan.

Mo Zhen thought about it for a while and shared his opinion, "She likes doing it as a hobby. Wouldn't it be too much of a pressure for her to handle?"

Ma Rui shrugged. "If she feels it will be too hard to manage, she can disagree. No one will force her to do anything she doesn't want to. You will only offer her an opportunity. As her elders, we can give her chances. Whether she wants to do it or not, that's her choice to make."

Mo Zhen wanted to ask his wife a question for a long time but never did. Seeing the flow of the conversation, he probed, "Why did you decide to ask her to be your model all of a sudden? What were you thinking?"