Chapter 169: Reasons Not to Get Divorced
Knowing Richard was joking with her, Isabella laughed softly.
"Mr. Spencer, you're welcome to come find me anytime. After all, Olivia adores you."
Among all of Isabella's friends, Olivia liked Daphne best, followed closely by Richard.
This was mainly because Richard was generous with his gifts—he'd bought Olivia plenty of toys and often brought her favorite chocolates.
For Olivia, whose chocolate intake was strictly monitored, Richard was practically a godsend.
After measuring for the car cover, Isabella bought two sodas, and she and Richard sat on the roadside steps, drinking without a care for appearances.
"Mr. Spencer, there's actually one more favor I'd like to ask of you."
Richard nodded. "Go ahead. If it's something I can help with, I'll do everything in my power."
Hearing Richard's response, Isabella felt much more at ease.
"Joseph and I will be heading to Canvia for the competition soon. Mary will be the only one at home, and I'm worried she won't be able to handle everything. I was hoping Mr. Spencer could help keep an eye on Olivia."
Most importantly, Richard had Julia at home too.
Since Olivia and Julia got along so well, she wouldn't feel lonely while Isabella was away.
Isabella had it all planned out in her mind.
Richard took a sip of his ice-cold soda, the chill instantly clearing his head.
"There's one important thing you haven't considered."
"Is Olivia willing to stay? Or rather, did you even ask for Olivia's opinion from the start? You'll be gone for at least two weeks for the competition. Olivia's just a child—no matter how safe the place or who she stays with, she'll still feel lonely."
Children this age were at their most dependent on family.
"I've always believed that beyond elite education and reading more books, what matters most is having a broader perspective on the world. If she could see the snow in Canvia with you, if she could play with you on the ski slopes—I think those would be more precious memories than any amount of schooling."
Richard's words struck right at Isabella's heart.
With this new perspective, Isabella took Richard upstairs to ask for Olivia's opinion.
The moment Olivia heard she could go to Canvia to ski, her eyes lit up with excitement, and she bounced right off the sofa.
"Mr. Spencer, I really, really like you!"
Besides chocolates, Richard could also bring her opportunities to travel. Olivia was practically over the moon!
Isabella laughed helplessly again.
She was happy too, but still put on a stern face deliberately.
"Before we get your passport ready and depart, I must warn you—Canvia is a very dangerous place. People die skiing there every year. So without any adult supervision, you're absolutely not allowed to go skiing. Don't even touch the ski equipment!"
Olivia nodded repeatedly, though whether she actually listened or was just too excited to pay attention was unclear.
Isabella could only shake her head in resignation.
"When is this year's championship being held?"
Isabella didn't even need to check a calendar. "In seven days, contestants will basically be gathering in Canvia Township for race scheduling. The actual competition will officially begin about ten days from now."
Richard nodded thoughtfully, then dropped a bombshell question on Isabella.
"I remember your divorce cooling-off period with William is almost up too. Are you choosing the Canvia Championship or divorcing William?"
The moment this question came up, Isabella finally realized the problem.
She had completely forgotten about something as important as divorcing William!
And the timing coincided exactly with the championship.
After a moment's thought, Isabella quickly made her decision.
"The Canvia Championship only happens at this time."
Isabella simply couldn't wait another eight years. She just wanted to throw herself into training as soon as possible.
"True. The only option now is to change the divorce date. Pushing it back a bit shouldn't be too difficult."
The hardest part would be communicating with William.
Isabella suddenly regretted kicking him at the dealership. She hadn't expected karma to come back so quickly.
So soon, she needed William's help with something.
Before dialing that familiar number, Isabella gave herself a mental pep talk.
Whether William agreed or not, Isabella was definitely going to Canvia.
She had already given up an opportunity that should have been hers once before.
Now, Isabella didn't want to miss out again.
A deep, magnetic voice soon came through the phone.
"Hello?"
"It's Isabella. I just realized that the end of our divorce cooling-off period coincides exactly with the preparation phase of the Canvia competition. I'll need to travel abroad then, so the divorce proceedings will have to wait until I get back."
Isabella was direct and didn't waste time, immediately telling William her intentions.
Divorcing William was something she'd been looking forward to for a long time too.
But compared to the Canvia Championship, the importance was different.
If she missed this opportunity, Isabella might never get to compete as a professional racer again in her lifetime.
But she couldn't tell William that directly.
Isabella only heard noise coming from the other end of the phone.
She could also hear Laura's voice.
They were now openly together.
Isabella had originally planned to notify William and hang up immediately, but she suddenly heard her own name mentioned in the phone conversation.
"Is this another one of your manipulative games, not wanting to get divorced? Deliberately timing it for now—you've been planning this all along."
Isabella was already angry enough arguing with William face-to-face. Hearing this over the phone nearly made her laugh with rage.
How could this be right?
William's capacity for narcissism was truly unmatched.
Isabella felt like he'd completely lost touch with human decency.
"Are you deaf?" Isabella finally couldn't take it anymore and shouted into the phone. "I'm just notifying you that our signing date will be slightly delayed, but it doesn't affect my desire to divorce you."
"The competition can't be postponed. If I could, I'd want to file for divorce today rather than have to endure being disgusted for a few more days!" Isabella unleashed a barrage of sharp words into the phone.