Isabella let them go on for a while before revealing, “I wasn’t the one who bought it. A friend of mine gifted it to me.” “How very generous! Who is this friend?” “That’s more than generous. That’s a whole statement by itself!” “Isabella, are you sure this friend of yours is just a friend?” They all cast playful looks at her while speculating about the identity of this friend. Isabella smiled, satisfied with the attention she was drawing from them. She said nonchalantly, “We’re just regular friends right now. It’s not what you girls are thinking.” Her friends exchanged looks with one another, concealing a deep glow of envy and faint hatred underneath their eyes. What kind of common friend would gift such an expensive gift? They were sure that Isabella had managed to land a wealthy benefactor, and it did seem like she was very fond of this secret benefactor of hers. "Isabella, I’m so jealous.” “Me too, I hope I can find someone as benevolent as this friend
"Hey, Isabel!” She had only just sat down when she heard someone calling her name. She turned around and saw her friends in the entertainment circle, Triss and Ramona, seated behind her. They were fellow actors, and she had known them since the very first film she was part of four years ago. They were adapting a certain web novel that was hardly known to the public at all to the big screen. Due to the lack of funding, the crew almost had to call off the project halfway through the filming when Isabel secretly had someone else fund the film to not expose herself. The project ended up being a success after that. It was a drama with a cast of female leads, which turned out to be her, Triss, and Ramona playing the protagonists. The reception of the film turned out to be great, partly attributed to the remarkable plot, and it took off in the mainstream in no time. It simultaneously helped her, Triss, and Ramona propel their careers. Triss and Ramona had started their actin
Isabel was quite pleased with this. Not only did she not have to face ridicule, but people were even largely complimentary of her. She briefly went through the comments before swiping off to her messaging app to text Carla. She asked, “How much did you spend on buying food for those girls just now?” Carla sent her a receipt. She had bought plenty of food and coffee for the fans just now which totaled up to a humble sum of several thousand dollars. Isabel promptly transferred over ten thousand dollars to Carla’s account. Carla told her, “Isabel, that’s too much.” Isabel was very gracious. “Keep the rest for yourself. You’ve earned it.” Carla replied joyously, “Thank you so much!” Isabel smiled and put away her phone. Carla had been with her since she started her acting career, and she was a very attentive and loyal assistant. In addition to helping her with her day-to-day affairs, she would also help liaise with her fans. She more than deserved the bonus. "
The high-level executives were not the only ones there. Several recognizable figures in the entertainment circle were eagerly waiting to talk to Roland as well. Showered with lights from every direction, he carried himself with fine dignity like royalty. His young and handsome looks attracted the attention of countless passersby, especially the young and beautiful actresses. Isabella was one of these young actresses drawn by Decker’s looks. She affectionately took his arms into hers and greeted him with a smile. Decker cast a quick smile at her before continuing his conversation with the others. Everyone was shocked. Isabel could hear someone in earshot exclaiming, "Oh my God, when did Isabella start seeing President Rockwell?” "Are you talking about that handsome man Isabella is with? President Rockwell? That name sounds vaguely familiar.” “The Rockwells from Southboro.” "My God, so it is him! He’s so young and handsome. How did Isabella pull this off?" "Heh
“Yes. I have what it takes to get the Carter Corporation on my side,” Isabel declared with steel in her voice. “Heh.” Decker chuckled dismissively before interrogating her, “What exactly is it that you have that Carter Corporation would be willing to help you?” He sized her up a few times upon raising this question. Isabel squinted. “Keep staring at me like that and I’ll poke your eyes out. Want to try me?” Her voice was ferocious. Deckers seemed to be taken aback by her vicious demeanor. He collected himself and formed that same smile again. “Would you mind telling me who your inside connection in Carter Corporation is?” "No." Isabel shot him down, “But what I can tell you is that the nature of my relationship with Carter Corporation is perfectly legitimate. We are equals unlike what’s going on between you and Isabella.” A mere actor would prop herself on equal footing with Carter Corporation, one of the most prestigious corporations in Westchester? Who would beli
Although Decker’s father had always cared a great deal for him, it did not change the fact that he was a b*stard child whose mother was a mistress. He was grown up despised by people around him and even now, he was devising a scheme to steal away the assets that were to be rightfully inherited by the true son of his father. Isabel's stomach grew sick at the thought of having a child with this despicable man. It filled her with disgust and disdain. Decker frowned and said, “He won't end up like me, I’ll make sure to make the necessary arrangements so that our child will inherit all of my wealth.” Isabel was at a loss for words. She had never seen someone as shameless as he was. She said without pulling back any punches, “Decker, you better give up, it’s never going to happen. I’m never going to be with you, let alone have a child with you." Upon noticing that she was preparing to leave again, Decker paced up to her again and asked stubbornly, “Have I not given you enough?
It was a very brief banquet that concluded in no time. Isabel bid farewell to Ramona and Triss before having her driver take her back to her place. Coincidentally, she chanced into Roland again when she was about to reach her place. He carried a briefcase in hand and wore a black suit as usual. Due to his tall and striking figure, it was very easy to spot him walking down the street. His melancholic figure adorned underneath the streetlights made for a very appealing sight. Isabel asked her driver to slow down. Then she leaned out the window to gawk at him for a while. When they were within earshot, she called out, “Roland!” Roland turned around. There was hardly a hint of fright in his eyes, he was cool and composed as usual. Isabel asked, “It’s the weekend today, why are you still at work?" He stated, “There’s still a lot of work that needs to be taken care of.” Isabel made a look, alright then. She asked the driver to stop, then she scanned the area
When Isabel looked up again, Roland’s figure had disappeared from the looming shadows by the entrance. She suddenly felt strangely lonely. With a long sigh, she turned around the corner and retreated into her apartment. … A month later. The serialized drama that Isabel was filming had finally come to a close, and the scenes for the grand finale were wrapped up. Over the course of the month, she had been with the crew nearly every waking hour to ensure the consistent quality of the final few episodes. She hardly went back to her place to sleep at night. Now that the show was a wrap, she felt like she had regained her freedom at last. After having a grand feast with the crew, she left the film set. Amanda had recovered from her illness and came to pick her up in person. On the way back home, Isabel sat with Amanda in the rear. Amanda began going through the upcoming itinerary. First of all, she was going to start joining the variety show The Wonder as the