SWNOVELS Chapter 121-130
Chapter 121
“There are seven people to feed in my family, and they all depend on me. Now Mr. Oscar says he’s going to put production on hold. How are we supposed to get by?” “You can’t just hear half the story and jump to conclusions. What Mr. Oscar meant was that production lines one, two, and three can keep going. Only four and five need a break. He’s not saying you can’t work, just that you need to chill at home for a bit ”
“A break for how long? With seven people to support, I can’t afford to be idle for even a day!”
“Like it or not, this is how it’s going to go down. There’s no room for negotiation! Has Mr. Oscar ever done you wrong this past year? Can’t you see it? Now that Ms. Bennett is in the picture, every little thing is getting scrutinized Production lines four and five have to stop, and the stock in the warehouse must be cleared out in the next few days. Otherwise, not just you and me, but even Mr. Oscar is going to be in hot water!”
Arabella got it. So, the products made at night on lines four and five were all faulty, huh?
The speakers must be Mr. Charlie from production and the leader of line four. They mentioned that the stock in the warehouse must be cleared out in the next few days. So, this stuff must be dodgy.
Quietly, Arabella left the hallway and headed to the warehouse on the first floor.
At night, the warehouse was unguarded. Arabella couldn’t open the warehouse door with her own fingerprint. Oddly, her fingerprint was supposed to be in the company system, allowing her access anywhere.
She entered the password, but the warehouse door still didn’t budge. In theory, this password should grant.her free reign throughout the company.
Unless someone deliberately deleted her data to keep her from entering that door,
A spark of interest flashed in Arabella’s eyes. She really wanted to know if Oscar’s behind–the–scenes maneuvers matched her suspicions.
The warehouse door had a three–layer password lock, which Arabella easily cracked. She also altered the upcoming surveillance recording.
Inside the warehouse, various garments were neatly organized. There were finished products processed for other companies as well as old and new products from their own company.
After a round in the warehouse, Arabella found two batches of new goods that looked identical but had vastly different workmanship and materials. Then she logged into the warehouse administrator’s computer and found that the low–quality batch hadn’t been entered into the company’s database. She copied all the data from the computer, sent it to her own email, and then erased all traces.
Just then, there were footsteps outside the warehouse.
Arabella leaped onto the overhead beam and looked down. The people who came in were Mr. Charlie and some employees.
All of them were faces she hadn’t seen before.
It suddenly dawned on Arabella that the day and night shift workers were not the same!
These guys must be Oscar’s cronies.
Each of them was holding a wooden stick.
The warehouse lights. were turned on, and the employees searched everywhere but didn’t find anyone.
“Mr. Charlie, don’t you think you’re a bit too jumpy because of the new Ms. Bennett?”
Mr. Charlie scanned the place, feeling a strange atmosphere. “Check the surveillance.”
Arabella had modified the surveillance previously. Although it was still recording, there was no trace of her having been there.
An employee checked the surveillance and immediately reported, “Mr. Charlie, no one has entered the warehouse.”
“That’s weird. Someone definitely saw Ms. Bennett entering the company just now. Could they have been mistaken?” Mr. Charlie was puzzled.
“There’s no sign of anyone being in the warehouse!
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Just now, one of the guys went downstairs to grab takeout, and he saw someone who looked a helluva lot like Arabella heading into the private elevator. From the back, it’s got to be her.
Mr. Charlie was kind of freaked out, so he decided to check the surveillance cameras at the front entrance.
If Arabella really did swing by, the cameras would have definitely caught her on tape!
While one of the dudes was busy pulling up the CCTV footage, Arabella whipped out her phone, deleted all the surveillance footage of her entering the building, and then started recording their every move
“Mr. Charlie, if Arabella really did drop by and she found out about the stuff we’re producing, what do we do then?” One guy asked, worried that Arabella might start digging into their business.
“The way she’s snooping around, it won’t be long before all our dirty laundry is aired in public!”
“Are we going to lose our jobs over this?”
“If Arabella finds out about our screw–ups, it’s not just our jobs that would be on the line; we might even get sued!”
Mr. Charlie, hearing their chatter, let out a snide chuckle: “If someone happened to get into a car accident or some other mishap on their way to or from work, we can’t be blamed it’s just their crappy luck.”
The guys were freaked out by his insinuation. Was Mr. Charlie implying that if Arabella saw something she shouldn’t have, he might resort to drastic measures? But Arabella was sent from HQ; what if there’s more to her than they know?
A little while later, the guy who went to check the surveillance came back and said, “Mr. Charlie, Arabella didn’t drop by tonight. That dude probably just saw it wrong. “Looks like we freaked out for nothing. What are we waiting for, then? Let’s get back to work!”
“I nearly had a heart attack, thinking Arabella had actually shown up. I even worried she might have come to the warehouse!”
A group of five or six guys turned off the lights and got ready to leave.
Just then, Arabella’s phone buzzed a few times. It was call from Romeo.
Her phone’s recording was abruptly interrupted.
Mr. Charlie, as if he heard something, asked sharply, “Whose phone was just vibrating?”
“No.”
Everyone fumbled for their phones. All quiet.
Arabella quickly hung up on Romeo, put her phone on silent, and texted him, “Busy now, let’s catch up later.”
Romeo replied, “Okay.” He initially thought she might have run into some trouble, but it seems he was overthinking.
Mr. Charlie listened carefully, but there were no more sounds. Did he imagine it?
“Mr. Charlie, you’re being too paranoid! That girl’s got you all jumpy! Haha.”
“This warehouse isn’t that big. If someone was hiding in here, we would’ve found them by now.”
They left laughing, dragging Mr. Charlie along.
The warehouse door was shut.
A glimmer of gloom flashed in Arabella’s eyes. It seemed their secrets were even deeper than she thought..
The warehouse was pitch black.
But Arabella didn’t immediately leave. She chose to stay on the crossbeam, waiting.
The lights outside were bright, casting a few shadows at the entrance of the warehouse. Beams of light spilled through the cracks of the door, illuminating patches on the ground.
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Not long after, the warehouse door was suddenly flung open, and the same gang barged in again. Mr. Charlie flicked on the lights, his eyes fierce, itching to drag out whoever was hiding inside. Several workers quickly searched the place but still found no suspicious characters.
“Mr. Charlie, we even checked inside the boxes in the corners, there’s really no one hiding.”
“You can relax now!”
“You mentioned hearing a cellphone vibration, you must’ve heard wrong”
Mr. Charlie’s gaze scanned the surroundings once again. Something felt off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. He looked somewhat eerie.
“If there really is someone in the warehouse, they would show up the moment we leave.”
“We waited outside for so long just now; if there was someone inside, they couldn’t possibly stay completely silent.” “Mr. Charlie, you’re probably overthinking!”
Mr. Charlie continued to scan the area, but there was no movement in the warehouse, so he gave up and said, “I hope so.”
This time, he really turned off the lights and locked up. Before leaving, he deliberately changed the password, hoping it would have some effect.
He thought that if his sixth sense was accurate and someone was in the warehouse, this new password would trap them inside.
If there was no one, even if someone got the old password in the future, they still wouldn’t be able to get in!
Arabella chuckled coldly when she heard the voice prompt indicating the successful password change. She didn’t expect this guy to be so vigilant.
But this door was like a paper tiger to her.
No matter what password was used, it was all the same.
There wasn’t a system in this world that she couldn’t crack; how could a mere door keep her confined?:
Arabella quietly climbed down from the beams of the warehouse and took a stroll around. She noticed a pile of inferior fabric in an inconspicuous corner, probably used to produce those shoddy new products.”
Her eyes dimmed, then she hacked into the company’s surveillance system to make sure no one was outside before she opened the door and left.
Romeo had been waiting outside for forty minutes. Seeing the familiar figure finally emerge, he rushed forward and pulled the girl into his arms. “All done?” “Hmm.”
“I’ll drive you home.” Seeing that it was getting late, Romeo drove her to Reflections Villa,
Edith was tending the garden when she saw Mr. McMillan personally driving their young lady home. She hurriedly invited him in..
Romeo didn’t refuse and led Arabella inside by the hand.
Serena was playing the piano to please her parents when she heard from the servant that Romeo had arrived. Kenneth and Louisa hurried downstairs to greet him..
Serena suppressed her eagerness to see Romeo and first went back to her room to freshen up, then instructed the maid Holly about something before heading downstairs.
“Romeo, Bella didn’t cause you any trouble when she spent the night at your place, did she?” Kenneth asked with a grin.
“No.” Romeo looked at Arabella tenderly and said, “In fact, we’re the ones always bothering her.”
Louisa couldn’t help but smile at their interaction. “How’s Phillip doing?”
Romeo politely replied, “Grandpa says seeing Bella makes him feel a lot better.”
“Hahaha.” Kenneth was thrilled that Phillip was so fond of his daughter.
“Bella has been going to the company a lot lately; we’re worried she’s not eating enough or working too hard.”
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No sooner had Louisa finished speaking than Romeo assured them, “Don’t you worry, I’ll take good care of her.”
He always had an affectionate look in his eyes when he looked at Arabella.
Kenneth and Louisa exchanged glances; both could tell that Romeo was head over heels for Bella–really smitten!
Just then, Serena walked down the stairs elegantly with her carefully applied makeup, flashing a classic debutante smile and warmly saying, “Hey, sis, bro–in–law, you’re here?”
Every move she made as she descended the stairs was filled with grace and nobility, like she was well–trained and practically flawless.
Seeing her manners and demeanor, Louisa was satisfied. At least all these years efforts weren’t wasted, especially when she heard her say “bro–in–law, It was clear that she knew her boundaries; she wouldn’t try to replace Bella just because she was previously engaged to Romeo and step into the McMillan family.
Arabella noticed Serena’s subtle makeup and responded lightly.
Romeo’s gaze remained on Arabella, filled with fondness. “Shall we go out for breakfast tomorrow morning?”
“I’d rather eat at home.”
“I’d like to join you.”
Kenneth heard that and thought, wasn’t that simple?
“I’ll have the kitchen prepare extra breakfast tomorrow, Romeo; you can come over and eat with Bella, then head to work!”
Romeo heard this and thought, just as he wanted, “Thank you.”
“No need; we’re family!” Kenneth asked with a grin, “What do you like to eat?”
“I’ll have whatever.” Romeo cast a doting glance at Arabella and said, “I’ll eat whatever Bella eats.”
Serena, ignored on the side, felt both jealous and embarrassed.
Just then, Holly seized the opportunity to bring over a glass of lemon water, saying, “Miss Serena, here’s your water.”
She had already served tea to Romeo and Arabella earlier, so nobody found it conspicuous when she brought a glass for the just–arrived Serena.
But she deliberately stumbled against the leg of a chair, and the water in her hand splashed all over Serena.
Quite conveniently, it splashed on Serena’s chest.
Serena was already wearing a silk robe, which was now mostly wet at the front, revealing her enticing curves.
“I’m so sorry! Miss Serena, I didn’t mean to!” Holly was extremely regretful and quickly pulled out a tissue to wipe Serena.
“It’s okay, don’t worry; I can take care of it myself.” Serena showed her understanding side.
But Romeo didn’t even glance at her for a second.
“Miss Serena, it’s all my fault; I got your clothes wet!” Holly emphasized the word “wet“.
But Romeo’s gaze stayed on Arabella. He whispered something in her ear; Arabella gave him a frustrated look, while Romeo flashed a mischievous smile. They seemed to be flirting.
“Serena, go change your clothes.” Louisa suggested it softly.
“Sorry. I’ll go upstairs to change and come back down to accompany you
No matter how polite she was, Romeo’s gaze never lingered on her for a second.
As she was going upstairs, Serena heard Louisa ask in surprise, “Bella, is this a new bracelet? I’ve never seen you wear it before.”
“He gave it to me.”
Her simple response made Serena pause in her steps, nearly frozen in shock!
“Romeo gave it to you?” Louisa hurriedly took a closer look. The design is so beautiful! I’ve never seen it on the market.”
“He designed it.”
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Serena was completely floored. Even Kenneth and Louisa couldn’t believe it, both of them blurting out, “Designed by Romeo?”
“This design is way too good, isn’t it?” Louisa kept gushing, “Even better than what our professional jewelry designers can do. The shape, the creativity. Love really does make a difference, huh?”
Who’d have thought Romeo had such a romantic side? Kenneth chuckled appreciatively and said, “Romeo, you’re such a sweetheart, making such a unique piece. Bella, have you ever given anything to Romeo?”
Arabella was stumped. Indeed, she realized that since they met, it had been all about Romeo’s giving and her taking. She hadn’t really returned the favor or even properly thanked him.
“You see, Phillip gave you that necklace with a special meaning, and Romeo personally designed this bracelet for you. Maybe when you have some time, think about what you can give them in return.” Kenneth suggested it with a warm smile.
“It’s all good.” Romeo brushed it off, sparing the girl beside him any embarrassment. He sincerely said, “Bella is the best gift the McMillan family has ever received. I just want her; nothing else matters.”
Arabella looked at him, his eyes full of love and tenderness. Overwhelmed, she quickly looked away.
“Romeo, you sure have a way with words.” Louisa chuckled approvingly. “Such a tender, tall, and handsome young man. Bella, you better hold onto him. I can tell Romeo would make a great husband.”
Arabella was speechless.
“Thank you for your kind words.”
Serena was utterly speechless!
She was already at the last step of the staircase. One more step, and she would be at the top, no longer able to hear their conversation.
But she felt as if she was frozen in place, unable to move!
Romeo had designed a bracelet for Arabella and even said such sweet and sincere words!
He was such a quiet and reserved man, yet he could say such things. It was clear how deep his feelings for Arabella were!
In just a few days, his affection for Arabella had deepened to such an extent!
“Miss Serena.” Martha offered her hand and asked, “You should change into something warmer. Don’t catch a cold.”
Serena’s eyes were filled with resentment and tears. She couldn’t accept it. She was the one who met Romeo first! If Arabella hadn’t returned, everything would have been hers!
The position of the Collins family’s heiress and of Romeo’s wife should have belonged to her alone!
Why is the world so unfair?
Why gave her such a high starting point only to ruthlessly push her into an abyss?
Despite feeling crushed, she instinctively picked out a sexy nightgown to wear for Romeo.
When she got downstairs, Romeo had already left. Only Kenneth, Louisa, Arabella, and Edith remained in the living room.
Serena took a quick look and decided not to go downstairs, instead hiding beside the staircase to eavesdrop.
“I heard about the canteen incident from the company. I can’t believe–Dave is so despicable. He’s been feeding our employees food full of all kinds of additives for a whole year!” Kenneth was furious. “Thank God Bella found out. Otherwise, our employees would have continued to suffer, and the company would have lost a lot of money!”
Louisa was also hearing about this for the first time: “That’s so heartless! Thank goodness Bella is capable and discovered this! But Bella, where did you learn all this professional knowledge?”
Incredible!
How did she know what additives to add to which foods to produce certain dishes?
Today, the company staff were left dumbfounded by how casually yet confidently she exposed all the canteen’s “conspiracies“.
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“I saw it online,” Arabella replied nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal.
“I can’t believe there are such jerks in this world, charging employees for meals and then serving them such crappy food” Louisa couldn’t help but ask, “Is it true that he’s Oscar’s relative?”
“Yes, Arabella answered indifferently
“And what’s Oscar’s stance on this?”
“Pleading for mercy”
“Pleading for mercy? He’s got some nerve sticking up for Dave, Louisa said getting a bit miffed. “I bet Oscar’s got some dirt on his hands too. Either he’s in on the scam, or he knows about it but chooses to cover for Dave.”
How else could Dave dare mess around in the Collins family’s territory?
There must be someone backing him up!
“Thank God Ms Bella went there, or we wouldn’t have known about all these problems in the company!” Edith couldn’t help but say, “You’re amazing! You’ve only been there a few days, and you’ve already rooted out two bad apples!”
Those two were like termites in the company. Rooting them out saved the company quite a bit of money.
“Bella, you’re only eighteen and you had no prior experience managing a company, but you’ve done an amazing job turning things around. We’re really proud and happy. You’ve saved us and your brother a lot of trouble,” Louisa said appreciatively.
Who knew why the Murphy family didn’t value such an outstanding kid? They must have had screws loose.
“Bella’s been working all day. Let her go take a bath and rest.” Kenneth knew the kid was tired. Managing a company, no matter its size, always involved a lot of busy work. “Yeah, go take a bath and relax,” Louisa said lovingly. “I’ll bring up some supper for you later.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“The cook’s already preparing it. Eat a little.” Louisa wasn’t sure if Bella was eating enough on her dates with Romeo. She was worried Bella might be holding back and not eating much in front of him.
“Alright, I’ll go up then.” Arabella didn’t turn down her mother’s kind offer.
When Serena heard Bella was going upstairs, she quickly hid. After Bella closed her room door, Serena came back out. She could still hear Kenneth and Louisa downstairs praising Bella.
“This kid is truly exceptional. She’s a natural at business. We must groom her for it.“”
“Groom what? She’s still young! Don’t even think about offloading the other subsidiaries on her!” Louisa was worried for her daughter.
“You’re right; that’s exactly what I was thinking.”
“One company is already plenty for her. If she decides to go to college after her results are out, you better not make her run this little company!”
“Alright, alright, I’ll listen to you. Whatever Bella chooses, I will support and encourage her.”
“That’s more like it.”
“But we will definitely have to leave some of the Collins family’s assets to her. If she doesn’t want to manage them, she can hire someone else. Of course, all of this is for the future.”
Hearing their plans, Serena’s nails dug into her palm.
Even if Arabella was their biological daughter, she was just a girl. There were many boys in the family. Why should she get a share of the Collins family’s assets?
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Arabella hopped out of the shower, fired up her laptop, and was knee–deep in her own business when a knock on the door interrupted her. “Sweetie, are you asleep yet? I’ve brought you some grub,” Louisa murmured gently.
“Not yet.”
Arabella’s slender fingers tapped a few keys before she shut her laptop, got up, and opened the door.
“I figured you might not have eaten much since you had a date with Romeo, so I asked the cook to whip up something for you.”
Arabella looked at the tray, rather surprised “Barbecue?”
“I heard kids your age are crazy about this stuff. Take a whiff; it smells good, doesn’t it?” Louisa put the tray down, beaming at her.
Arabella picked up a piece of meat, instinctively offering it to Louisa.
“I’m not big on this. You enjoy! You’ve been working your tall off these past couple of days, dealing with all that company stuff. You just got back home; you haven’t had time to chill.”
“No sweat,” Arabella said, chowing down. “It’s kind of fun.“,
At least it wasn’t as dull as school.
Louisa was reassured by her words: “Just delegate those minor tasks. Let’s go shopping, have afternoon tea, get a facial. We could even go on a short trip or a long one. Anywhere you like, we’ll gladly accompany you.”
Arabella looked up and gave a slight smile. “Sure.”
“Still getting used to living here? Anything you want to change? Like, is the bed too hard? Curtains not dark enough? Any decor you don’t like? Or maybe the food.” “Everything’s cool.”
Louisa couldn’t fathom why the Murphys were so hard on this well–behaved, understanding girl!
Such a darling.
“I heard Phillip sent over afternoon tea for you today.”
Arabella looked up, surprised. How did she know about this?
Louisa was all smiles. “Grandpa Phillip personally called your dad, asking what kind of afternoon tea you like. You just got back; we’re still figuring out your preferences. Good thing we have Romeo!”
Arabella was taken aback.
‘Romeo knows your likes and dislikes like the back of his hand. I can tell he’s really into you. Whenever he looks at you, it’s like you’re the only one in his eyes. With a partner like that, you’re bound to have a happy future.“.
Louisa’s hand gently rested on Arabella’s, her eyes shifting to the bracelet on her wrist.
We’ve known Romeo for years; he’s always been reserved, cold, and serious, he hardly cracks a smile. But he’s like a different person around you; the love and tenderness in
is eyes. We’ve never seen that before.“.
And we’ve never heard of him designing bracelets for a girl. You should get him something in return; don’t let his feelings go in vain.”
Sure.” Arabella obediently nodded, her gaze falling back to the butterfly bracelet on her wrist. The dazzling diamonds sparkled under the light, just like Romeo’s clear and evoted eyes.
he realized she hadn’t really given Romeo anything..
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Who knew what kind of things that guy would be into?
The next day, before the crack of dawn, Serena was already up and getting dolled up. She deliberately chose a black cami dress; her hair was piled high on her head, exuding an aura of elegance and dignity
“Serena, you’re drop–dead gorgeous!” Martha said, helping her put on a dazzling necklace. “You’re way prettier than Ms. Bennett in this getup.”
“Martha, don’t sugarcoat it, I know I’m not as pretty as my sister.”
Even when Arabella was dressed down, her aura and her pretty face outshone everyone else.
Martha’s expression froze for a moment before she laughed and added, “Miss Serena, your features are bold and striking, just like someone from a well–off family should
be”
“Do you think Romeo will like what I’m wearing today?” Serena looked at herself in the mirror; her skin was delicate, her brows were clear and bright, and she was noble and elegant
Martha sincerely admired her beauty: “If I were Mr. McMillan, I would have been totally smitten by now! Miss Serena, be confident; you’ll definitely be the belle of the ball!” Just then, Holly knocked on the door and said, “Miss Serena, Mr. McMillan is here. Ms. Bella hasn’t woken up yet, and the lady of the house is still asleep. Would you like to go down and greet him first?”
Upon hearing this, Serena couldn’t contain her excitement. She hurriedly touched up her make–up and went downstairs ahead of everyone else.
Romeo wanted to see his crush early, so he arrived forty minutes early. He told Edith not to wake anyone up; let them sleep in.
When Serena came downstairs, she saw him sitting on the sofa. His aloof demeanor combined with his dignified figure made him unspeakably handsome..
“Romeo, why are you so early? My sister isn’t an early riser.” Serena approached with a smile. “Shall I pour you a glass of milk?”
“No need.”
“You mustn’t have eaten anything yet since you came out so early. Have some milk first.”
Just as Serena was about to head to the kitchen, she heard him say, “No need; I’ll wait for Bella.”
Serena’s smile froze on her face, but she quickly said, “If you’re waiting for my sister, why not take a stroll in the garden instead of just sitting here? You haven’t been here in a while. We’ve planted some new varieties in the garden. See if there’s anything Grandpa Phillip might like and take some back for him.”
“No need.”
“The air in the garden is great; it can bring good vibes for the whole day. It’s still early; I’ll accompany you for a stroll.:
“I’d rather be alone.”
Romeo’s intention was clear, but Serena suddenly squatted down and gently touched his knee. “Romeo, ever since my sister came back, you’ve been colder towards me.” Before she could finish, Romeo shifted uncomfortably and said, “Please behave yourself.”
Serena’s hand fell empty; her heart ached. “I know you like Arabella, but it wouldn’t hurt to talk to me! She’s so broad–minded, she wouldn’t mind. Besides, we’re not doing anything, just chatting.”
In other words, if Arabella minded them chatting, it would mean she was petty and narrow–minded.
Seeing her trying to get close again, Romeo’s gaze turned icy. “But I do mind, Miss Lisa; please respect yourself.”
Seeing that he didn’t want to have anything to do with her, Serena looked at Martha in the distance. Martha gave her a hint with her eyes, and Serena touched his leg again. This time, Romeo immediately stood up, looking down at her and saying, “Enough.”
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“Romeo” Serena spotted him about to leave and quickly grabbed the hem of his coat. “I like you; I really do. Can you turn around and look at me, please?”
At this moment, Martha coughed from a distance, seemingly hinting at something.
Following Martha’s gaze, Serena saw Arabella descend the stairs step by step. She hurriedly let go of Romeo’s coat, stammering, “Sis, you mustn’t misunderstand.”
Crap, would Arabella spill the beans to their parents?
Would they think Serena had ulterior motives and kick her out of the house?
If that were the case, she’d be doomed!
“Carry on,” Arabella said nonchalantly as she walked towards the kitchen.
She had been watching the drama unfold from upstairs until she got hungry and didn’t feel like watching anymore.
Romeo shot Serena an annoyed look, then quickly caught up with Arabella’s pace, explaining nervously, “Bella, it’s not what you think.”
“Oh? What is it then?” Arabella retorted indifferently as she continued towards the kitchen.
“She just happened to brush against my coat, that’s all.” Romeo hastily took off his suit jacket and tossed it in the trash bin.
Standing still, Serena felt like she had just been slapped across the face. She was utterly mortified!
He actually found the clothing she touched filthy!
“Bella” Romeo grabbed Arabella’s hand and asked, “Are you mad? If so, I’ll change my pants too.”
While heading upstairs, he called David Collins and asked, “Which pair of pants in the cloakroom haven’t you worn?”
“What?” David Collins sat up on the hotel bed, his handsome face full of surprise. “Romeo, are you broke? You don’t even have pants to wear?What are you doing at my house so early in the morning?” David Collins, the youngest son who was rarely home, suddenly understood, “Are you so broke that you need my family to take you in? Should I wire you some money? I can’t let you be so destitute.”
“Which one hasn’t been worn?” Romeo resisted the urge to punch him and pushed open the door to the cloakroom. It was about 20 square meters, with clothes for different seasons and occasions and materials neatly arranged….
But the colors were too conspicuous, too trendy–a bit hip–hop, not Romeo’s style.
“The left section is all gifts from brands, and they’ve all been washed before being put into the closet. Just how did you go bankrupt? Tell me, how did I not hear about this big news?”
Before David Collins could finish his taunting, Romeo ended the call.
After changing his pants and heading downstairs, Romeo saw Arabella on the balcony, making a call. Her slender figure was so pleasing to the eye that it was indescribable. Seeing her hang up after a few words, Romeo immediately approached her and said, “Bella, I’ve changed.”
Arabella glanced at him, and sure enough, he had changed into new pants. How did he have pants at her house?
“Bella.” Romeo wanted to hug her.
But Arabella, aware of the several servants around, didn’t let him get what he wanted.
Romeo felt like he was missing a piece of his heart. He was extremely tormented.
“Romeo, you’re here early today?” At this time, Kenneth came downstairs, yawning lazily.
“Good morning.” Romeo looked attentively at the girl in front of him. She seemed indifferent, like she was angry.
Kenneth was cheerful, feeling great first thing in the morning. “Morning, Bella, Serena, you’re up too? Go have breakfast first; I’ll wait for your mom.”
“Okay.” Serena glanced at Arabella nervously. Seeing Arabella walk towards the kitchen without any intention of telling on her, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief..
Thank God, if her parents knew she had grabbed Romeo’s coat, they would surely think she had ulterior motives.
At the dining table, Romeo gently blew on the fried egg on the plate before setting it in front of Arabella and saying, “It’s not hot anymore; you can eat now.”
Arabella didn’t eat it and instead picked u p a cute-looking sandwich, casually biting into it while considering what Jack had told her on the phone earlier.
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Romeo held up a glass of milk to her and said, “How about some milk?”
Arabella didn’t seem interested in drinking. Roméo swapped the milk for a cup of coffee and held it to her lips.
“Will you ever stop?”
Unfazed, Romeo put down the coffee and kept talking: “How about cream of mushroom soup? Or salmon seafood soup?” Arabella was reminded of Jack’s news–a few of their brothers were injured by Group S–and Her brows furrowed in irritation.
Seeing her finish a sandwich, Romeo served her a plate of toasted bread.
Arabella was a bit helpless. “Can you stop stuffing me with food?”
“What can I do to make you not mad?”
“I’m not mad.” As soon as Arabella responded, her phone vibrated. She glanced at the caller ID, stood up, and walked away to answer the call.
【Boss, Group S sent a message. They’re demanding our territory within three days, or they’ll blow us to smithereens.]
“Ha.” Quite audacious.
There was a place outside the jurisdiction of three countries. From the sky, it looked like a triangle, hence the name “triangular zone.”
The zone was lawless and home to countless small gangs and a few larger organizations; Arabella’s group being one of them.
Their territory housed a mountain full of rare herbs, some natural, some planted by Arabella. It was worth a fortune.
Group S’s threat today was undoubtedly a desperate move, keen to claim the land for themselves.
“You handle it.” Arabella had just returned home and couldn’t personally go to the triangular zone.
Just then, Romeo hugged her from behind.
“I’ve got to hang up.”
“Bella.” Romeo’s voice was deep and captivating.
“Are you still eating?” Arabella didn’t expect him to be so clingy.
The thing was, from the start, Serena had been sitting there watching, feeling wronged and angry; she couldn’t even finish her breakfast!
She couldn’t believe that Romeo, usually so aloof, would stoop so low!
He didn’t have a temper in front of Arabella at all!
Even if Arabella gave him a hard time, he was all about pleasing and showing weakness!
How could Arabella treat such a great guy like this?
It was too much!
“Please forgive me.” Romeo pleaded with the girl in his arms, “Don’t ignore me.”
Arabella was truly at a loss for words. “Haven’t I been responding to you?”
“You’ve become colder. How can I get you to pay attention to me?”
“Talk to me like you used to.” Romeo held onto her tightly.
Arabella really couldn’t recall how she used to interact with him. She felt like she hadn’t changed at all. Or was it because she zoned out earlier and didn’t notice what he said, making him feel neglected?