Chapter 6

I closed my eyes again, and somehow my mind drifted back to figuring out why Ronald's stomach's been acting up lately. Ronald's always been a workaholic. Even before we got married, he’d skip meals for the sake of work, and that’s basically how he ended up with his chronic stomach issues. After we got married, I felt bad seeing him like that, so I threw myself into learning how to cook just so he’d eat properly. Over time, he actually started enjoying meals—and his stomach problems pretty much disappeared. Now look at him—without me, his stomach’s acting up again. Sigh. No luck at all, that man. But then again, isn’t his perfect little "first love" a doctor? If he’s really that miserable, he can just go whine to her and fake some poor-me act for sympathy. Whatever. None of my business anymore. I’ll wrap things up tomorrow and push him for the divorce papers. The sooner the better. Early next morning, Emma was already up and getting ready to go. She shouted as she rushed out, "Something urgent came up at work—I’ve gotta head over right now." "I already sent you the address of the partner company on WhatsApp. You drive over yourself, okay? To make it up to you for ditching—dinner’s on me tonight!" Half-asleep, I mumbled, "Mmm... sure." I didn’t actually crawl out of bed until the sun was high and bright. After brushing up and getting dressed, I put on some light makeup. The mirror showed a woman with soft doe eyes and elegant features. The slight upward curve of her lips gave her a touch of charm. With a red maxi dress and a few carefully chosen accessories, she looked polished, radiant, full of life. Honestly, I’m not bad-looking. Just... a little too sultry. Not the sweet, innocent type like Ronald's so-called true love. You know, the kind you'd think of as a first love… I gave my hair a quick twirl with my finger and slapped on some bold red lipstick. Yeah, more fox-like than ever now. I headed downstairs for a quick breakfast and then hit the road, driving to the place Emma had sent me. Something about the address felt familiar, but I couldn’t pin down why. "You have arrived. Your destination is on the right," the GPS announced. I turned to look. There stood this luxurious, towering office building. After grabbing my bag, I got out of the car and walked in. I took the elevator straight up to the 33rd floor. The whole place was bright and spacious, with an expensive-looking interior. The 33rd floor especially screamed wealth and status. I walked over to the front desk, and the receptionist introduced me to a woman in business attire with her hair in a neat bun—apparently, this company’s senior secretary. She was on the phone at the moment. "Don’t worry, Mr. Perry. I know how long you’ve been looking for her. If she shows up, I’ll let you know right away. Got it." Once she hung up, I handed her my resume. "Hi. I’m here for an interview." She didn’t even glance at me, just started flipping through the pages, all focused and professional. And then, her expression changed. She stared at me like she’d seen a ghost. "Wait… You’re Reverie? The designer behind the Dreaming Butterfly collection?" Not gonna lie—I felt a bit awkward. Reverie and Dreaming Butterfly were names I randomly came up with back in high school. Super over-the-top, super cringey. Hearing that now made me want to shrink into myself. "Yeah… that’s me." Her eyes went wide as she slapped one hand over her mouth in pure excitement, rushing to shake mine. "Oh my god—you broke into the scene in high school, peaked during college with Dreaming Butterfly… You’re the top designer Reverie! I can't believe it's really you!" "Our managers have been searching for you for ages. Someone mentioned you might drop by today, but we honestly weren’t sure. And now—wow, you're actually here!" She was way too enthusiastic, gripping my hand so tightly it actually hurt. I forced a smile while gently pulling my hand back. "A friend set this meeting up for me." The secretary kept chattering like she didn't hear a word I said. "Miss Carter, I seriously love your work! But how come you stopped designing? It's been over a year with zero updates—I thought you quit the industry or something!" I replied honestly, "I had to take a break for personal reasons, but I plan to get back to designing soon. By the way, when’s your manager arriving? When does the interview start?" It was only after I reminded her that she snapped back to business mode. "Oh right, sorry! Give me a sec, I’ll call now. Our boss even talked to Mr. Wright earlier today—they’re both coming to meet you!" She dialed while talking. Mr. Wright? That name instantly gave me a bad feeling. After she hung up, I asked, "Who's your boss, again?" Still smiling, she said cheerfully, "You didn’t see? It’s Nicholas Perry. They’re almost here, just give it a minute." Nicholas! My face changed in an instant. That’s Ronald’s best friend—young master of the Perry Group. Those two are basically attached at the hip. Super tight, childhood buddies. Unlike Ronald’s serious and deep kind of vibe, Nicholas was your classic spoiled rich guy—big into partying. Most of his businesses were in entertainment—clubs, events, all that wild stuff. He’s had… what, hundreds of girlfriends? At least. Then it hit me why this place felt familiar. Ronald had mentioned once he invested in Nicholas’s company. I came here to drop off lunch once or twice, but it was rare, so I didn’t remember it clearly. Truth be told, I never liked hanging out with guys like Nicholas, so we rarely crossed paths. The secretary still wanted to chat, but I cut her off fast. "Sorry, I just remembered I have something urgent to take care of. Let’s talk another time." I got up and made a beeline for the exit. She tried to stop me, but I ignored her—I was just hoping to get out before they showed up. But just as the elevator opened, boom—I ran straight into two tall, ridiculously good-looking men. One was in a sharp black suit, white shirt, and brown tie, that familiar handsome face giving nothing away as he walked in. Ronald. Standing next to him was another stunner, but the vibes couldn’t be more different—he wore a casual trench coat, had those confident brows, and a playful, almost smug grin. Seeing me, Ronald’s eyes flickered with surprise. "Isabella? You’re here?" Nicholas laughed out loud, “Whoa, look who it is. Didn’t expect to see you here, Isabella! How come no heads-up?" Yeah, I wasn’t about to start anything with them. I didn’t even look back—just brushed past, heading straight for the elevator. “Isabella, stop.” Ronald’s voice behind me was cold as ice, but I didn’t slow down. He must’ve been pissed. In two steps, he was right beside me, grabbing my wrist tightly. I had to stop. Turning back, I met his sharp gaze and clenched jaw. "I told you to stop. Didn’t you hear me?" I tried to yank my hand back, but he didn’t budge. "Yeah, I heard. So what? Doesn’t mean I have to do what you want. Let go." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nicholas raise a brow with amusement and smirk. "Ronald, damn man, what’d you mess up this time? She’s actually ignoring you? That’s a first." Ronald shot him a cold glare, and Nicholas quickly zipped it, raising his hands in pretend surrender, grin widening. Then Ronald’s eyes locked back onto me, dark and unreadable, like a black hole pulling everything in. "Still playing games? How long are you planning to keep this up?"