Right after Isaac said that, he added, "Not for Tommy—but for me, and only me."He was referring to the bond between them."Okay," Irene murmured softly, leaning downward to wrap her arms around his neck from behind, and nestled her cheek against his. She loved him, after all—she could get upset if he messed around with other women. She wanted him, not just so that Tommy had a happy family, but for herself too.That was when Stan returned.He was in too much of a hurry to knock, and realized that he had been reckless when he entered and found Irene having a tender moment with Isaac.Still, just as he was about to close the door, Isaac said, "Wait for me at the conference room.""Yes, sir," Stan replied, and closed the door behind him.Irene felt a little embarrassed, and released Isaac just then. "Are you going to discuss how to save Tommy?" she asked. "Yeah. Stay here if you have nothing else to do," Isaac replied. "I'll be right back once we're done talking."However,
Isaac appeared solemn. "What else would I be talking about? I want an answer before this evening."With that, he rose to his feet, pausing for a moment when he remembered something. "Send me an email—show me what you have on Ian's sugar baby.""Yes, sir," Stan replied.Irene had yet to return when Isaac returned to his office, so he sat down before his desk, turned on his laptop, and checked his email.After scanning through the dossier Stan sent, he became pensive.It appeared that Ian had not had any affairs with other women for six months after meeting his latest sugar baby. This was certainly rare—Ian's relationships lasted a month on average, but somehow he was with this one for six. He could actually be in love, but there was no telling for certain… Meanwhile, Irene had returned from her tour, and strode in when she saw Isaac, asking, "Is there a way to save Tommy?""Calm down," Isaac said distractedly as he moved the cursor to delete the email, but Irene vaguely saw
Just as Isaac was about to get up, however, Irene moved the cursor and said, "Wait—let's get prepared as much as we can before we get started."As she read through the dossier on Ian's sugar baby, Isaac watched her from the side, smiling faintly as he admired her prudence.And after she was done, Irene said, "This might not be as hard as I thought.""How so?" he asked."Look here—she's a dance judge," Irene pointed out. "I happen to know some dancing, and that counts as a conversation starter, I guess?"Isaac's eyes twinkled as he watched her.Indeed, Irene was quite versatile, having learned the piano, painting, dance, and medicine."Wait, I think my friend might know here," Irene suddenly said as a person came to mind.She took out her phone and took a photo of the woman, while pulling Isaac along. "Do you remember Mark Wickers? From Dorime Pharmaceuticals?"Isaac followed as he replied, "I do. We're still partners."Irene appeared a little excited just then. "His wife has
Isaac asked, "Can you do this?""Don't worry—I won't cause trouble," Irene said confidently. "I won't endanger myself even though I want to save Tommy. Moreover, I don't think anyone would notice someone like me."She was basically telling Isaac not to worry since she would be fine.Isaac certainly knew that she was smart, but she was still a woman—she would not win in the face of brutes who could not be reasoned with."Don't be reckless.""Yeah," she replied. With that, the car turned silent and neither spoke.Irene wanted to speak, but could not put any words together.Soon, they were at the community arts center."Drive safe," she said as she alighted.Isaac watched her for a moment, and said, "Okay."…After Irene entered the building, she was at a loss on where to go. She asked the front desk, and they showed her where she should go to hand over the list.Luckily for Irene, Robin Lynd was on duty, and sitting in front of a computer.Knocking the door to draw her att
Irene wondered to herself if Ian was talking about Tommy just then, but she was too far to hear what he was saying clearly—she just happened to be able to catch him saying 'child.'Ian was still standing before his car, speaking to someone on the other end. "Bring her to me. I want to meet her."He was looking for a woman who had recently given birth because Tommy had been crying terribly and refusing to drink formula milk. After reading various articles online, Ian concluded that the boy wanted breastmilk, which was why he was looking for a woman who was lactating and could feed Tommy, so that the boy would stop crying.In truth, Tommy was crying because the formula milk Ian was feeding him was from another brand. The change in flavor did not suit him, but he would have kept feeding if he was fed the original brand.Ian, however, did not know that. As he hung up and got in his car, he glanced at Robin, who was still standing nearby and sighed. He wanted to show concern, but was
Irene asked, "Are you alright?"Robin could tell what she was referring to, and bitterly said, "I haven't been with him for that long, but we used to be happy. He would always watch my theater shows and treat me to gourmet food. We hold hands when we go shopping, and I'd lean on his shoulder at the cinema…"The memories left her eyes welling with tears."I mean, I know that we don't suit each other—he's a child of the Jefferson family, while I'm just some unknown thespian. I know we wouldn't go all the way, but… It's just so sudden! I can't take it, even if I knew this was inevitable."Irene listened attentively, and asked gingerly, "But why would he suddenly break up with you? Maybe he met someone else? You know how changeable men can be."Robin thought about it. "I don't think so… He's actually been quite busy lately.""What with?" Irene tried to sound casual."I'm not sure…"Still, Robin suddenly realized that Irene was asking about Ian, and quickly became wary. "Why'd you a
Robin stared at Irene. "Why are you so surprised?"Irene quickly composed herself and smiled, "Well, I'm just a doctor who only has dancing as a hobby. I haven't ever gambled even though I'm an adult, so an underground casino is both exciting and new to me…""Look, don't tell anyone," Robin told her. "This sort of business is illicit, and it's an indictment if the authorities find out.""My lips are sealed," Irene said, but her tone soon changed sharply. "Wait, are you still being considerate after he dumped you?""We used to be happy and that's all that matters," Robin quietly said, her tone conveying helplessness and misery. "I don't want to see him in jail even if we've broken up…""Oh, but didn't you say that he is from the Jefferson family? They have both power and money, don't they?" Irene asked while feigning ignorance. "I'm not sure, but I just know that he has a serious grudge against his cousin," Robin replied. "That's why his casino is not legal and he cannot afford
If Robin had not told her, Irene would never have thought that there was a casino hidden in this cargo port."Come on, I can take you there," Robin said, leading her to a small boat.There were two men on it, and the boat was meant to ferry passengers to the casino. Both men had seen Robin before, so they let her on. However, they stopped Irene since they never saw her. "You're not allowed here.""She's with me," Robin said. "She's a friend of mine, and she knows about the casino. Your boss told me to never breathe a word about it and I never did, and I'm here to look for him. Is he in?"Ian had his arms around Robin when they last came, and both men knew that she was Ian's girlfriend.They had to let Irene as well since Robin vouched for her, but…"Your phones, please."Robin knew the rules, and quickly passed hers to them.Irene, however, needed hers to contact Isaac—once she surrendered it, she could not reach him even if she finds Tommy."What?""Sorry, but it's the r