Chapter 10

The commotion drew the attention of everyone in the room. Isobel had always held back from drinking with anyone in the room out of consideration for Ethan's feelings, so many of them were seeing her drink for the first time.

They couldn't help teasing her. "This is such an honor, Ms. Somner."

She rolled her eyes inwardly. She had to play nice for that million-dollar deal. She put down her glass and smiled at Theodore, but he wasn't moved.

So, she picked up another glass and downed it. This glass had a bigger mouth than the previous one, so the liquor trickled down the corner of her mouth as she chugged the drink down.

The liquid trailed from the corner of her lips to her jaw and slender neck. Then, the droplets moved past her collarbones and disappeared into her cleavage.

Everyone's eyes were on Isobel, so no one noticed the slight bob of Theodore's Adam's apple as he watched her.

A flush slowly spread over Isobel's face after having had a few drinks, but Theodore showed no sign of telling her to stop. It didn't help that the woman beside him kept refilling the glasses.

Isobel didn't stop her. She gritted her teeth and continued downing one glass after another. She didn't know how many glasses she had, but Theodore still didn't tell her to stop.

Suddenly, the door flew open with a bang. Everyone turned to look at it.

Isobel stopped drinking when she saw who the newcomer was. Before she could say anything, he fixed her with a menacing look and growled, "You said you were talking business tonight. Does this look like the place for that? How shameless can you be, Isobel?"

Isobel's gaze had been a little unfocused from the alcohol, but it turned steely as she looked at him. She wanted to say something, but Theodore beat her to it.

He snorted and gave her an unreadable look. "You should come talk to me when you're done dealing with your personal matters, Ms. Somner."

He was referring to the business deal, but Isobel seemed to sense an undercurrent to his words. Before she could process this, Theodore strode out of the room.

He was close to 6'2", so his tall figure was imposing. No one dared to say a thing as he left.

Isobel scowled at Ethan. "When will you have enough of this? Didn't I already say that we're over?"

She despised him. Could he compensate her for her losses if she were to lose this deal with Theodore? Of course, he couldn't.

She got to her feet angrily to leave, but Ethan grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her out. No one said anything as they watched things play out, the desire to gossip burning within them.

Isobel was tipsy from all the drinks she'd had, but that didn't stop her from telling that Ethan was truly enraged.

He'd only learned about Isobel being at the private club after seeing Liam's social media update. From the photo, he'd seen the look in Theodore's eyes as he'd watched her. It was reminiscent of a predator eyeing its prey.

As a man, Ethan knew very well what that look meant. His possessive streak wouldn't allow any other man to covet his woman.

Isobel stumbled after him and ended up being stuffed into the backseat of his car. She watched as he pounced on her, which pissed her off. She didn't hesitate to slap him hard.

"Are you fucking out of your mind, Ethan?" She couldn't resist swearing.

He looked down at her, his eyes bloodshot. "What? You won't let me fuck you, but you'll let Theodore Stone do it?"

He gripped her jaw, his relatively handsome face clouding menacingly. "Do you really think he'll be interested in you? Stop fucking dreaming, Isobel."

Isobel struggled to sit up, but Ethan had already reached out to tear one of the straps holding her dress up.

Suddenly, the car jolted forward, and Ethan fell off her with a pained howl. Isobel scrambled up to see him curled up on the car's floor.

Outside, the headlights of a Bentley Mulsanne flashed. After a heartbeat, it reversed slightly, and a man got out. What a coincidence—it was Theodore.

A cigarette dangled from his lips as his lips curved in a lackadaisical smile. "Sorry, my foot slipped on the pedal. Are you okay, Mr. Goode?"

He formed an apology with his words, but he didn't look or sound apologetic at all.

Ethan had had one leg sticking out of the car earlier, so the collision had broken it. He'd grown up in luxury, so he'd never experienced such pain before. He was so agonized that he couldn't form words. All he could do was hold his leg and howl in pain.

Isobel was dazed but also disgusted. Who exactly had she been in love with in the past?

Theodore stepped forward and glanced at Isobel indifferently before turning to look at Ethan. "I'll bear all the expenses. You can always come to my company to see me if you have anything to complain about, Mr. Goode. Of course, you can also just hire a lawyer."

Isobel leaned back, feeling like she'd just survived an ordeal. Her fingers trembled as she rummaged in her bag. When she didn't find what she wanted, she looked up at Theodore and asked, "Do you have a cigarette?"