Chapter 204

Chapter 204

Bella's voice was calm. "So, Mr. Mellon, how exactly do you want me to thank you?"

Edward's gaze was cold and dark. If he just wanted gratitude, why go to such lengths?

Suddenly, the hospital room door opened.

Hatty walked in carrying a basket of fruit, acting as if she didn't notice the awkward tension between them.

"I figured you were awake, so I came to check on you. These fruits are from everyone; they all feel really bad about what happened."

Seeing Hatty come in, Bella felt a wave of relief wash over her. "It's too kind of you; it was my own fault."

Hatty deliberately started chatting with Bella.

Edward stood to the side, unable to join the conversation, his face growing darker by the minute.

Eventually, he left the room.

Hatty glanced in the direction Edward had gone, exhaling deeply, her expression complicated. "How did you end up getting involved with the CEO of Vanguard Innovations Group?"

"You have no idea how scary he was yesterday. But let's not talk about it."

Bella felt guilty towards Hatty. "I'm sorry, Hatty."

Hatty waved her hand dismissively and placed the fruit basket on a nearby table.

"It's not a big deal for me, but you need to be careful. Getting too entangled with someone like him is never good."

Bella's eyes dimmed, and she gave a self-deprecating smile. If only she had heard these words sooner, maybe things wouldn't have turned out this way.

But now, it was too late.

Bella had acute gastroenteritis, and once the inflammation subsided, she was fine. She stayed in the hospital for just half a day before returning to the studio.

Upon learning she was discharged, Vanguard Innovations Group immediately sent over some items.

In the quiet office, everyone stared at the array of stomach-soothing soups Mason had brought, neatly arranged on the table.

Anyone who didn't know better might think they were expecting a VIP.

Bella frowned at the sight of the items. "Mr. Walker, please send these back. I don't need them."

Mason wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "This is Mr. Mellon's gesture of goodwill."

In other words, he couldn't take them back.

Bella's frown deepened. What exactly was Edward trying to do?

Mason left the items and departed, but Bella had no intention of touching the soups, leaving them to sit there untouched.

Everyone looked on with envy. Especially after a long day, when they were all starving, the faint aroma wafting from the living room was hard to resist.

Soon, someone couldn't hold back. "I can't take it anymore! These were sent for us to drink, right? Whatever, I'm going first!"

Hatty tried to stop them but was too late.

Bella remained calm, speaking softly, "It's okay; I won't drink them anyway. Everyone, feel free to have a taste. Consider it his contribution."

Hatty looked at Bella with a complicated expression.

Only Bella would dare to think of making the CEO of Vanguard Innovations Group contribute to their office.

The next day, Mason tried another method to send items over.

Bella refused them all, which ended up benefiting the two men in the PR department.

One of them, an older employee named Bob, teased Bella, "I remember you're not married yet. With the CEO of Vanguard Innovations Group so concerned about you, don't you have any thoughts?"

"You women have it good. You don't have to work hard like us men; someone will take care of you."

Bella immediately retorted, "No need to be envious. Go abroad and get a sex change; you can be a woman too."

Bob glared at her, furious. "What do you mean by that?"

Bella didn't back down, meeting his gaze directly. "There are two women in our studio: me and Hatty. Are you implying you're dissatisfied with Hatty?"

Bob froze.

Just then, Hatty came over, having heard the commotion.

Seeing them arguing, she frowned. "What's going on? I could hear you from the other side."

Bella recounted the incident to her.

Hatty's face instantly turned cold. "Bob, is that true?"

Bob naturally denied it, pointing at Bella and cursing, "No! This bitch is slandering me! Hatty, you know I'm an honest person; I would never say something like that."

Hatty snorted coldly. "Enough. I'm not an idiot. If you're so dissatisfied, you can leave the studio."

Bob looked incredulous. But Hatty's words were final, and no one dared to keep him.

As he packed up and left, the other person in the PR department began to keep a respectful distance from Bella.

After Hatty kicked Bob out, she apologized to Bella. "Sorry, I didn't realize Bob was that kind of person."

Bella shook her head. "I should be thanking you, Hatty, for standing up for me."

It was just a few sarcastic remarks; there was no need to kick Bob out.

Hatty smiled and patted Bella's shoulder, half-jokingly. "It wasn't entirely for you. I'm a woman too, and I can't stand people who are sexist."

The storm seemed to have passed, but Bella knew she couldn't let things continue like this.

The most special person often becomes the most hated. She couldn't let herself become that person.

Bella called Mason and got the address of Vanguard Innovations Group's branch office.

She immediately took a cab there. Upon arrival, she found someone had beaten her to it.

At that moment, the person was flirting with the receptionist, holding her hand and reading her palm. "Your career line is clear, but your love line, not so much."

The receptionist, seeing someone arrive, tried to pull her hand away from Keith.

"Let go of me; someone is here."

Keith turned around and met Bella's gaze, a smile quickly appearing on his face.

He waved. "Hey there, unlucky girl. We meet again."

Bella ignored Keith and walked straight to the receptionist. "Hi, I'd like to see Mr. Mellon."

The receptionist hurriedly made a call to inquire.

While waiting, Keith couldn't resist bothering Bella. "Don't you remember me?"

Bella disliked two types of people. One was those who had no sense of boundaries, and the other was those who were annoying. Keith happened to be both.

With a cold attitude, Bella said, "You're blocking my view."

Keith nodded and stepped aside, still trying to chat with her. "Why are you looking for Edward?"

Seeing he was still pestering her, Bella's face turned completely cold. "I don't think I need to explain to a stranger who almost hit me the first time we met."

The receptionist hung up the phone and directed Bella to go to the third floor to see Edward.

Bella didn't waste a moment. As she entered the elevator, she noticed Keith had followed her.

Looking at the carefree Keith beside her, Bella felt a strong dislike.

"I remember there are two elevators. Mr. Hammond, why don't you take the other one?"

Keith suddenly laughed. "Then why don't you take it?"

Soon, the elevator stopped.

Bella didn't want to spend another second with him and immediately stepped out.

Edward's office was the first room on the left. Mason was waiting outside, looking like he had been expecting her for a while.

Bella glanced at him, steadied her nerves, and pushed the door open.