Chapter 53

My phone wouldn’t stop buzzing. I glanced at the screen—every single call was from Ronald. No joke, he’d called at least ten times. I let out a snort and ignored it. Picking up now? That’s basically volunteering to get yelled at. I rushed into work. The office was noisy as usual, but the second I walked in, everything went dead silent. Everyone suddenly looked all serious and went back to their desks, faces stiff. I didn't bat an eye. Just kept walking and went straight to my office like nothing happened. Daniel, our sweet boy-next-door type, jumped up the second he saw me. His eyes lit up and stayed fixed on my face for a good few seconds before he asked, "Isabella, you okay? You didn’t show up this morning, I was worried." I sat down and powered up the computer. "I'm all good, just got held up with something. Let’s get to it." He kept staring at me, concern written all over his boyish face. Then he hesitated, asking, "Hey, uh… your lips look kinda swollen. Could it be an allergy? Gra