Leena gave birth to a baby boy, which was much to Justin's disappointment as he had been hoping for a girl. He did not look forward to welcoming a baby boy cousin. So, it was with an unhappy face that he paid Leena and the baby a visit with his father to express his strong dissatisfaction.

  "Hey there! You look very upset. What has gotten you so annoyed?" Leena asked. It was frustrating to see Justin depressed. Leena refrained from teasing him lately. She wondered why the young boy looked miserable.

  "You lied to me! Where is the baby girl?" Justin blurted out. Another boy! He didn't want a boy. He had long been wishing for a baby sister to love, not a naughty little boy!

  Leena couldn't help but laugh. "When did I promise you that? You can't blame me," Leena defended herself. She was at a loss for words after learning why Justin was unhappy. She recalled him asking about the baby's gender before, but didn't remember saying it would be a girl. Even she didn't know until the baby was born what it was.

  "Humph!" Justin grumbled. "You're still the bad guy," he accused Leena. The boy felt down in the dumps. His last hope for a sister had vanished. Scowling, he crossed his arms in annoyance. But it dawned on him there was still another chance. His mother could have a baby girl! But Justin was embarrassed to bring the matter up with his mother. What a bummer!

  "Hey, don't get mad at me! Look, Uncle Rain doesn't have a baby yet," Leena pointed out. "You can count on him for a baby sister," she told Justin. Since Spencer didn't ask for his mother the whole day, Belinda was able to visit Leena and congratulate her for being a new mother.

  "Uncle Rain?" Justin scoffed. "Come on. He doesn't even have a girlfriend yet! And my guess is when I turn 18, he would still be a lonely, single man," Justin groaned. "Now I miss Auntie Annie. I wonder how long he's going to wait for her." The boy wasn't going to count on Rain for a baby girl. With Annie gone so long, it might take a thousand years before the two would meet again.

  Belinda looked at Justin sharply. "Don't ever mention her name to his face, is that clear? He may kill you," she warned. Annie's name was taboo among them. Everyone avoided talki

  Drugged one night by her ex-boyfriend, a mysterious man took advantage of her in an ecstatic night filled with sex.

  To take her revenge, she married the man, and used him.

  "As long as I'm alive, I'm still his legal wife, while all of you are just his mistresses."

  She remained adamant even when he was involved in scandals with other women.

  Eventually she stormed off after she learned that he had betrayed her again.But life brought her back to him a few years later, to his astonishment.

  p her son were forever etched in her memory.

  "But why is it that he was punished a lot by Dad later?" Leena inquired. She remembered Kevin telling her stories about his childhood when they first went to the capital city. As a young boy, Kevin said his father was very hard on him. And Leena wanted to know more about what happened for Nathan to treat his son that way.

  "Oh, yes! That's right, and it's a long story," Shannon said. "Boys always go through a naughty phase, and it is not totally a bad thing. Look at Kevin today. He's a very accomplished man, isn't he? So, boys misbehaving when they were young doesn't define the men they become." Nathan often punished Kevin when he was a teenager. His father was very strict, which led him to rebel. Eventually, Kevin was enlightened and understood what he had to do when he was older.

  "What you said is true. Now, I'm wondering when Kevin will be back. He's unreachable by phone, so I am a bit worried," Leena said. Kevin's latest assignment was in a remote place where phone signals were weak.

  Patting Leena on the arm, Shannon assured her, "Don't worry so much. I'm sure he'll be fine." The army's destination for every mission was always top secret, as were details of their task. And the families of soldiers were never clearly told where they were going. Having been a soldier's wife for several decades, Shannon had gotten used to this. Kevin's wife, however, was new to this, so she had to assure her daughter-in-law.