Chapter 73: Only Widowed, Impossible to Divorce

Serenity Health Institute.

Jason stood outside the glass viewing window, looking at Mandy lying in the hospital bed.

She had survived, but she had a severe trauma to the head as well as multiple compound fractures throughout her body. Her entire face was wrapped in gauze.

The attending physician stood beside Jason, flipping through the medical records.

"Mr. Roberts, Mrs. Roberts' life has been saved."

"However, beyond the injuries from the impact, her body was marked with multiple severe bruises and lacerations- injuries inconsistent with a car crash. We made sure to collect evidence before the surgery. Do you want to report this to the police?"

Bruises? Lacerations?

Could it be...

Jason's eyes darkened slightly as he spoke slowly, "No need to report it."

The doctor tactfully left.

A nurse pushed open the door to the hospital room, indicating that Jason could go in for a five-minute visit.

Jason walked to the bedside.

When Mandy saw Jason, tears immediately welled up in her eyes, and painful whimpering sounds came from her throat. She wanted to speak, but wearing a breathing mask, her eyes darted around desperately.

"Mom, focus on recovering." Jason looked down at her from above, his tone lacking warmth.

"As for the car accident... it couldn't have been an accident. It was Louis's final warning to you."

Mandy's pupils suddenly dilated, and her whole body began to shake violently.

Jason sighed again, placing his hands on the edge of the bed and lowering his voice.

"I'll handle every detail of your follow-up treatment. I won't let you live with permanent scars from what happened."

"If Evan comes looking for you again, you need to tell me. Also... behave yourself. Stay away from Elisa and do not provoke her again...ever."

With that, Jason straightened up, turned around, and strode out of the hospital room.

Mandy stared blankly at the ceiling with her blood and tears seeping into the gauze and staining it. A mountain of grievances rose in her throat but she swallowed them in silence.

Three days later, Emberfall City.

The Royal Foundation Mining Act was officially signed.

At the same time the agreement was signed, the bilingual text of this bill involving hundreds of billions of dollars was posted on the official forum of the International Translation Council.

The precision of the core terminology and the rigor of the ancient language interpretation caused a sensation throughout the translation community.

At the end of the document, there were only two signatures: Leandro and Elisa.

Elisa sat on the sofa in her hotel suite, her laptop screen glowing, feeling quite pleased with herself.

Marshall's call came through, his voice trembling with excitement.

"Elisa! The forum crashed! When Victor's team saw the signatures today, their faces turned ashen! Mr. McCall said he'll take you back home this afternoon and go directly to his research institute."

"Got it." Elisa's tone was calm. "Marshall, help me set up a meeting with Sean. I need to see him."

There was a pause on the other end.

"Sean? Okay, I'll arrange it right away."

After hanging up, Elisa closed her computer and pulled out a resignation letter she had already written from a document folder.

Becoming Leandro's apprentice meant she would enter the field of national-level classified document decryption. She couldn't keep her position at The Harvey Group anymore.

Sean was at the coffee shop at two o'clock in the afternoon.

He sat by the window in a well-tailored gray suit, his gaze gentle and composed.

Seeing Elisa push the door open, he immediately stood up and pulled out the chair across from him for her.

"Is your foot injury better?" Sean handed her a cup of warm coffee. "Marshall mentioned you had a bit of a scare a few days ago and ended up spraining your ankle."

"Much better, thank you." Elisa sat down and, without small talk, pushed a white resignation envelope directly in front of Sean.

Sean's gaze fell on the envelope.

He didn't immediately reach for it. Instead, he smiled.

"I guessed as much." Sean picked up his coffee and took a sip. "Mr. McCall's final and most important disciple—The Harvey Group really can't keep you. But Elisa, you didn't need to make a special trip to resign in person."

He put down his coffee cup, leaned forward, and locked eyes with Elisa.

"I figured if I didn't see you today, I might never have another opportunity to ask you out privately like this." Sean's voice softened, yet his voice carried an unyielding tenacity.

"Elisa, I don't want to just be your senior or your boss. I like you. I've liked you since the day you did that impromptu interpretation at the university welcome party."

Elisa wasn't surprised. Sean's care during this time had exceeded normal superior-subordinate boundaries.

She sat upright, hands on her knees, looking directly at Sean.

"Sean, I really appreciate how you feel." Elisa's voice was gentle but left no room for negotiation. "But in my plans, I have no intention of starting a new relationship. This resignation letter is also to avoid future awkwardness at work. I'm sorry."

The rejection was clean and decisive, leaving no hope.

Obvious disappointment flashed in Sean's eyes. He smiled bitterly and reached out to take the resignation letter.

Just as his fingertips were about to touch the edge of the envelope, a large hand wearing a Patek Philippe watch suddenly reached out from the side and pressed down on the resignation letter.

Sean's hand froze in mid-air.

He looked up and met Louis's cold stare, watching as he sat down beside Elisa and naturally wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Mr. Harvey." Louis's lips curved into a smile devoid of warmth, his fingers tapping twice on the resignation letter. "I'm delivering this letter on behalf of my wife. Thank you for The Harvey Group's care during this time."

Sean was completely stunned.

His gaze switched back and forth between Louis and Elisa.

"Your wife?" Sean frowned, looking at Elisa. "Elisa, last time when I dropped you off at your apartment building, you clearly told me Mr. York was your brother."

Elisa felt the arm around her waist suddenly tighten.

Louis's grip was strong. She could clearly sense the jealousy and anger surging from him.

"Brother?" Louis turned his head to look at Elisa, his words heavily emphasized.

He certainly remembered her nonsense that night downstairs. He hadn't settled that score with her yet.

Elisa calmly met Sean's gaze.

"Sean, that was a misunderstanding." Elisa began to explain. "At that time, he and I were in the middle of a divorce. I was angry, so I just said that randomly in front of him. He is indeed my husband."

As soon as these words came out, Louis's tense jawline immediately relaxed.

The force of the arm around her waist also became gentle, shifting to a possessive caress.

The light in Sean's eyes completely dimmed.

He was a smart man and a dignified one. Elisa's word "husband" was not only clarifying the facts but also completely killing his confession.

"In that case, I wish you both happiness."

He straightened his suit jacket and nodded slightly to the two of them.

"Elisa, The Harvey Group's doors are always open to you. Goodbye."

Sean turned and strode out of the coffee shop.

After confirming Sean's figure had disappeared around the street corner, Elisa reached out to pry off the large hand around her waist.

"He's gone. Let go."

Not only did Louis not let go, but he turned her ninety degrees to face him directly.

"We were about to get divorced at that time." Elisa knew what he was upset about and found it somewhat amusing.

"I didn't sign the divorce papers. The only way you'll be single again is if I'm dead. Divorce is not an option- not in this life."

Louis directly grabbed the back of her head and, without any warning, pressed down and kissed her hard.

The kiss was a claim- rough, punishing and possessive.

With a sudden, forceful pressure, his tongue pried her teeth apart and drove in deep in a relentless manner that seemed to plunder her every breath. Elisa was kissed until her breathing became erratic, her hands pressing against his chest, unable to push away his solid torso.

There were other customers in the coffee shop. Elisa made muffled sounds of protest in embarrassment and anger.

Louis didn't care. Only after he had thoroughly tasted the sweetness in her mouth did he slightly pull back.

Their noses touched, their breaths heavily intertwined.

"If I ever hear you say such things again," Louis's voice was hoarse, "I'll make sure you can't get out of bed for three days."

Elisa's cheeks burned as she glared at him.