Felix and Isabella returned to the car after spending time walking on the beach. The night air was getting colder, and Felix thought it wasn't good for Isabella's health. After fastening Isabella’s seatbelt, Felix prepared to turn the key and start the engine.The car drove away from the beach. It had been a memorable date, but something was still bothering Isabella. She bit her lip, weighing whether her decision to ask a question would be the right one or not."By the way... why did you and Sarah end things back then?"Felix turned the wheel to the left, taking the busy main road."Well, there were business and political matters involved.""Sarah didn't love you?" Isabella asked, straight to the point."I don't know." From his tone, Isabella could tell Felix wasn't interested in discussing this. "But she wanted us to end the relationship. And, yeah, she then married Louis. I guess it will benefit Sarah’s family in the future. I'm happy for her if she's happy."Isabella looked at Feli
Isabella was still staring at Peter, who lay there with a bruise on his cheek. She was completely confused about what to do. However, Felix acted decisively and quickly reminded her, "We need to check if Irene is inside, right? Or are you just going to stand there and watch the unconscious man?"Felix gave Isabella a meaningful look, and she nodded, giving her approval. He then forced open the door in front of them.After three attempts, Felix finally managed to unlock the door. Isabella grabbed Felix's hand, making him turn toward her."What now?""Peter is the guard of this apartment, Felix.""So?""He should have the key to Rudolf's room."Felix's eyes widened. He couldn't believe Isabella was thinking about that at such a critical moment. Sighing, Felix held Isabella's hand and said, "The door is already open, you don't need a key. Let's go inside!""Alright."Felix stopped deliberately at the entrance, while Isabella continued inside. Her blue eyes scanned the room. It was still
Sarah stared blankly at the man above her. Her blue eyes locked with the brown gaze of the English-born man who had become her husband. It had been a few weeks since they got married, but Sarah couldn’t let go of anything whenever they made love. She couldn't reach climax, and everything ended in pretense.“I’m going to finish, darling!” Louis’s groan marked the end of their heated sex that night.Or at least, that’s what they did as part of the formalities of marriage on top of business matters. Louis turned and rolled over to Sarah’s side. His breath was still heavy from the remnants of their activity together.“Can you look at me when we make love?”Sarah’s heart raced, but not from passion. The question hung between them, heavy with meaning. She hesitated, unsure of how to respond. Her body, tense under the weight of Louis’s words, seemed to freeze. The room, dimly lit by the streetlights outside, felt suffocatingly small, as if the walls were closing in on her.“What do you mean?
Felix drove through the quiet streets after dropping Isabella off. The night felt heavy, weighed down by the situation with Irene still haunting his mind. His thoughts were filled with the address they had just discovered, but a phone call interrupted his focus.It was Sarah.Her voice was trembling, choked with sobs. "Felix... I don’t know what to do. Please come."Felix's heart tightened. He had never heard Sarah cry like this before. Worried, he turned his car around and drove to where Sarah was. When he arrived, Sarah stood outside, her eyes swollen from crying. As soon as she saw Felix, she ran into his arms, clutching him tightly as if she were drowning."I can’t... I can’t keep doing this," Sarah whispered between sobs.Felix, though still burdened by the situation with Isabella and Irene, felt the immediate need to comfort Sarah. "Let me take you home, Sarah. You need to rest."But Sarah shook her head, gripping Felix’s jacket even tighter. "No, I don’t want to go home. Please
When Felix's car arrived in the garage, Isabella was enjoying cereal for her breakfast. And Isabella could see that Felix was still wearing the clothes from the night before when they were searching for Irene. Isabella smiled."You didn’t come home last night?"Felix loosened his shirt collar and sat across from Isabella. "No. I was checking on something. Have you had breakfast?"Isabella nodded. "Uh-huh, I just finished." She offered, "Want me to make you breakfast?""Sounds good. I’ll take a shower while you prepare it.""Alright."Felix left his phone and bag on the table and then headed to his room. They really looked like a real couple now. Isabella grabbed a new bowl from the kitchen shelf and placed it on the table. She was about to pour some fruit-flavored cereal into it when she noticed Felix’s phone light up. A message notification appeared on Felix’s phone, sparking Isabella’s curiosity. She leaned in and peeked at the message that popped up on the screen. Instantly, her br
"Are you leaving now?"Isabella picked up her shoes, which she had carelessly tossed aside, and started putting them on. Nodding, she smoothed out her white outfit and said, "Yep. I’m going to the office to work and see my handsome husband’s face."“Ew. You sound disgusting,” Emily replied.“At least it’s better than spending all day in your room looking at men’s private parts on your dating apps, Emily.”Emily laughed and threw a small pillow from nearby at Isabella. "You’re annoying, Bella."“I’m heading out now. Bye!”“Take care on the road!”Isabella felt better after talking with Emily, though of course, she didn’t really provide any solutions. She then headed to the office, slipping back into her role as Irene, the personal secretary and contract wife of Felix Kingston. When Isabella entered the office, she could feel the busy atmosphere surrounding Felix at his desk. He was deeply engrossed with his laptop, eyes and hands focused on the screen. Isabella had to clear her throat
"Isabella? Are you listening?"Isabella gasped. It was as if she had seen lightning on a bright, sunny day. The news was completely beyond her expectations. She blinked in disbelief before finally shouting, "What? A niece? How do you know it's… Irene's daughter?"Nicholas let out a short sigh, as though he was tired of answering rhetorical questions like the one Isabella had just asked. He pulled out his phone from the pocket of his suit and busied himself for a moment before showing the screen to Isabella. "She registered her as a daughter, Bella."Seeing the phone pointed at her, Isabella quickly took the smartphone from Nicholas’s hand. She examined the data displayed on the screen thoroughly, reading from top to bottom carefully. She still couldn’t believe the data until she looked at Nicholas again. "This doesn't make sense, Nick.""What do you mean?""She just got engaged.""You know, in America, you can have a child without being married. What's the problem with that?"Isabella
Isabella arrived at her parents' house with a bouquet of lilies and a bag of pizza in her hands. She was wearing a yellow cropped hoodie and a knee-length denim skirt, which made her look feminine on this bright Sunday. Her heart was filled with hope that Rose and Ben's condition had improved since the last few days.Knock! Knock! Knock!After waiting a few minutes, the door was finally opened by Ben. When he saw his daughter, Ben smiled."My daughter!"Ben was always warm and enthusiastic. While hugging Isabella, Ben said, "You came on a good day, Bella. Your mom made custard pie with chocolate sauce." Isabella pulled away from the hug, looking excited. "That's your favorite, isn't it?""Really? I wouldn't miss it, Dad." Isabella lifted the pizza in her hand, showing it off to Ben. "I also brought pizza for us.""That looks delicious. Let's go inside."When Isabella entered the house, Rose had just finished preparing the chocolate sauce and placed it next to a tray of custard pie. Sh