Isaac could never resist Irene when she was being so charming.Smiling begrudgingly, he said, "Fine."Irene beamed, and he lifted a brow. He asked, "Are you really that happy about this?""I just wanted to see what she's up to," Irene said. Isaac turned to study her—she was as indomitable as she was a risk-taker, but he liked that about her.He never cared for women who were too soft, something which Irene was not.She was actually tough and smart, but she wasn’t hard as nails—her body was just so soft that he didn’t want to let her go whenever he had her in his arms. She certainly was the best of both worlds.They soon arrived at a mall, and Irene got a trolley once they alighted from the car. Mrs. Watson had always been making Isaac's meals, and all his other needs were seen by other personnel too—he had therefore never been to a mall himself.Since he wasn’t used to it, he stayed quiet as he watched Irene and followed her around, eager to stay close and so he wouldn’t b
Irene was staring at Robin from the back, her lips curling in a smile as she was almost certain what Robin was up to now.While the other personnel were timing their clocks, Irene waited at the break room, where a man approached her. "Are you an instructor?"Irene shook her head. "No.""A fellow judge, then?" He continued—he was one of the judges as well. Like most male dancers, he was slim and exceedingly well-groomed, with his hair combed meticulously. The getup did not seem to make him shady, however, thanks to his sunny disposition.Irene was just about to answer when she spotted Robin nearby, and quickly pretended to look guilty as she whispered, "I'm a judge, but I’m actually acting as a stand-in.""Oh! I was just wondering that I've not seen you before, since I've been judging most competitions and met most of the other judges. You're not exactly a familiar face.'Irene hung her head low. "Actually, this is my first time, so I don't know much about anything.""It's fine
The entire sports complex erupted in an uproar before the host could finish—every parent was absolutely livid, while the contestants were dumbstruck.They had been sitting there and waiting for so long, only to be told that the competition didn’t count."Why?! Our children had practiced so hard and did so well! Why shouldn't this count just because you said so?""That's right! I even applied for leave to watch my kids!""Are you calling the entire competition moot? What happened? We need an explanation!"The parents were soon filing out of the audience seats and entered the court, causing pandemonium."Please calm down, everyone. We've just received word that one of the judges is an impersonator, which is why we cannot accept the scores legally."The voices of discontent only grew louder."What's happening? How could someone impersonate a judge?""It's your own oversight, isn't it?""..."As various complaints were belted at the organizers, the man who spoke with Irene just
Feeling as if she had caught on to Irene’s vulnerability, Robin’s arrogance rose as she continued haughtily, "I can guarantee everyone that you don't know a thing. You're a swindler, and you’re pretending to be a judge and waste every contestant's hard work as well as their parents' time! I just want to know, how did you get here in the first place?"Her words were hardly vague, and someone promptly chimed in, "Just look at how weak she is. Most definitely the casting couch—"Before the man could finish, Irene turned and leveled him a glare so sharp that he stopped immediately.Even the male judge who had been siding with Irene since the start was stunned by her glare—her delicate air seemed to fade right away, and there was fire in her eyes.A far cry from the delicate kitten just now!"You've been insisting that I can't dance, but what if I can?" Irene asked.Robin naturally doubted that. "There's no way you can. If you prove that you can, I’ll wipe this entire building with my
Robin was shaking with rage. "You tricked me! That doesn't count!"The sporting complex they were at was so huge she would never finish wiping it for days, not to mention that she had to do it with her bare hands. Moreover, after suffering such ignominy, how was she supposed to stay in her department? Most importantly, how would others see her now?Robin wanted to harass Irene because Irene used Robin’s naive trust in the first place, and that caused problems for Ian. Unable to stand the indignation, Robin wanted to humiliate Irene in public, only to let Irene turn the tables on her.She wanted nothing less than to run at Irene and strangle her!Irene walked up to Robin, unfettered. "I can let that go, as long as you answer my question truthfully.""What is it?" Robin thought that she was saved as Irene offered an alternative. "You sent those anonymous texts to Ricky, didn't you? Did you also extract Samantha out of jail and hide her?" Those were questions Irene wanted very
The male judge had brought the jacket Irene forgot. He was about to help when he saw Robin grabbing Irene’s hair, but someone beat him to it."Miss Spencer? You forgot your jacket," he said, holding it out to Irene.Irene was going to reach for it when Isaac took it, casting a cool glare at the male judge and showing no inclination of thanking him.He had seen how mesmerized the male judge was when Irene was dancing—the man was just using this as an excuse to talk to Irene.Irene, however, thought that Isaac was being impolite since she did forget her jacket. She smiled at the male judge. "Thank you. You've helped me a lot today.""It's nothing," he smiled back. "This gentleman is…""My husband," Irene replied.Isaac had been keeping a profile, which left the male judge thinking that he was an average Joe.He couldn’t resist sizing up Isaac at that—deciding that Isaac was just a little taller and handsome, but nothing else, and certainly was not as gentlemanly as him.Those
As Isaac kept laughing, Irene was left mystified. "What are you laughing about? Me?""No," Isaac replied. "I'm laughing at myself for falling for your dad's ploy."Irene was silent for a while, and laughed as well when she came to a realization."You like that about me?" she asked."I do," Isaac said, composing himself as he continued, "And I like that it's you."Even if Irene knew none of that, he would have fallen for her anyway. Knowing that simply made her a more colorful personality.Irene naturally did not try to nitpick, since it was her either way."She may have been foiled this time," she said, returning the conversation to Robin. "There's no telling what she’ll be up to next.""I’ll have Stan keep an eye on the Jeffersons," Isaac replied calmly and quietly—as if they didn’t matter to him.Irene knew she couldn’t be of help when it came to work. "I’ll do my best to not get in the way.""Right, I should go to the hospital," she added, since she had yet to check on Ric
Ricky quickly tried to hide it. "Nothing…""Really?" Irene asked as she passed him his glass of water, clearly sounding doubtful.Ricky averted his gaze, but soon came up with an excuse. "The logistics issue we had? It's been resolved."Irene nodded. "You did well.""But you came up with that idea," Ricky reminded her.In fact, he was a little jealous. He must admit, their father had insight. Even though it wasn’t one of Irene’s strengths, Lionel left Spencer Holdings in her care anyway, and she learned quickly enough to resolve a potential crisis."I'm not that older than you. Just keep your mind working, and you’ll surpass me in a few years," Irene said encouragingly—the boy had matured considerably since Lionel's passing.Ricky flashed a rare smile. "Alright. Anyway, I think I'm fine here. You still have to take care of Tommy, don't you? You should go.""Okay. Contact me anytime if something comes up," Irene said as she stood. "Don't forget your water.""I won't," Ricky r