Chapter 179

Chapter 179

"I regret it."

Those three words kept echoing in his ears.

Michael gripped his phone tight, his mind filled with nothing but those three words.

Isabella actually said she regretted it.

How dare she?

What did she think he was?

From the very beginning, Isabella had always been the one making the moves.

And now she just gets to say she regrets it? How could that be?

He wouldn't allow it.

He wouldn't allow Isabella to have regrets, and he wouldn't allow anything to slip out of his control.

But his hands were shaking badly.

Ever since Isabella came back, he had believed they could go back to the way things used to be. No matter what, as long as he tried hard enough, they could return to how they once were.

But when he actually heard those three words, his heart filled with an inexplicable panic.

His dark eyes stared at the phone without blinking, and his breathing slowed.

The car had stopped at some point without him noticing.

The driver lowered his voice. "We're at the office."

Michael slowly looked up. His eyes were tinged with red. He closed them, and in an instant, he was back to being the cold, hard man he always was. He got out and walked into the building.

The driver shrank back in his seat. "Good lord. What was that about? Scared the life out of me."

……

Meanwhile.

Isabella had no idea her words had been overheard. Right now, she was busy planning her future.

"Mom and Dad do feel bad for me, but there's nothing I can do about it. I've got no other options at this point. I can't just drag the whole family through hard times, and besides, I have a way to keep it from them. As long as I do well at work and make partner, there'll be more opportunities down the road. I'll just say I took out a loan."

Bottom line — her parents could never find out how hard things had been.

Stella let out a sigh. "As long as you're okay with it."

Whether she was okay with it or not, life had to go on.

So Isabella pulled herself together, got changed, and headed to the office.

It was the middle of summer, yet she was covered up from head to toe. Anyone could tell something was off just by looking at her.

But no one was going to be foolish enough to get on the wrong side of their golden goose.

That's right — Isabella had become the company's golden goose. She hadn't even made it to the office yet, and the place was already packed with people waiting to sign contracts.

Isabella walked into her office and was caught off guard.

"You're so busy, we totally understand. We don't mind waiting at all. Take a look at our contract. If everything looks good, we can sign right now."

"This is from our company. We're very serious about this. We're ready to sign a five-year deal..."

Faced with a flood of contracts coming at her from every direction, Isabella paused for a moment, then quickly got her bearings. "Alright, let's move to the conference room. It's a bit crowded in here, and I also need to speak with my boss."

After getting everyone settled, I turned to go find my direct supervisor — but Hugo was away on a business trip, so I ended up running into the big boss instead.

The two of them met face to face.

The boss was all smiles. "Why didn't you tell us sooner about your connection with Mr. Johnson? I completely misjudged you. Let's have a proper talk. Take a look at this contract. I had it drawn up for you first thing this morning. Never mind anything else, just the partnerships you've brought in are more than enough to earn you a spot as a partner."

Isabella stared at the black and white text on the contract, completely stunned.

Becoming a partner had always been her goal, but she never expected it to happen this easily.

Not only had she landed the title without much effort, but she was also in line for a substantial share of the profits.

Setting aside everything that had happened before, just the contracts signed today alone would bring in commissions worth several million.

There was no reason to turn down money that was already in her hands. Isabella signed on the spot.

Before long, every contract in the conference room had been taken care of.

Isabella had been running around all morning, her cheeks flushed from the rush.

The boss personally handed her a cup of coffee. "We've got our anniversary celebration coming up soon. Do you think there's any chance Mr. Johnson might be able to make it?"

"Of course, I know our company isn't that big, and strictly speaking we're not really in a position to invite someone like Mr. Johnson, so no pressure at all if he can't come."

His words said no pressure, but his eyes were full of hope.

Isabella thought for a moment, then nodded. "Sure, that should be fine. He might not be able to stay long, just a quick appearance, but that works, right?"

"Absolutely, that's more than enough. Just having him show up would be a huge honor for us. I'll look forward to the good news."

It had been a very productive day.

Looking at her bank account balance, Isabella was over the moon.

End of the workday.

Isabella suddenly remembered something and quickly caught a cab home.

She opened the door to find Clea sitting at the table, eating quietly and neatly. They both let out a breath of relief.

"I'm sorry, Clea. Last night ran really late, so I couldn't make it back. Did you miss me? Were you scared?"

Isabella walked over and pulled Clea into her arms, her voice full of warmth.

Clea set down her fork and knife and broke into a bright smile. "It's okay! The auntie here is such a good cook. Look, she made me these little snacks and a healthy meal. It's all so yummy."

Isabella glanced over, and sure enough, the table was set with a proper kids' meal.

The best part was that everything had been shaped into cute cartoon characters — exactly the kind of thing kids go crazy for.

Seeing that Clea wasn't upset, Isabella smiled. "That's good. Once your dad comes back, I'll take you home. Is there anything you want to do or eat? I can get it ready for you."

"It's okay! Uncle already brought me tons and tons of toys when he came back..."

Uncle.

Before Isabella could even process that, Michael walked in through the door.

He was holding ice cream he had just bought.

Clea lit up and started bouncing with excitement. "You're not so bad after all, you mean uncle. I guess I don't hate you anymore."

Kids are the easiest to win over. All it takes is toys and food.

Whatever Michael had done, he had already won the little girl over.

So Clea wasn't put off by Michael at all anymore. If anything, she seemed completely at ease with him.

Isabella felt a wave of exasperation wash over her. She hadn't eaten all day, so she sat down and started eating.

Michael glanced over at Isabella carefully, a flicker of guilt in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't know it would turn out like that. I picked up some ointment. Let me help you put it on later."

His voice was low and rough, with a note of pleading in it.

Isabella looked up and smiled. "It's fine. Actually, I should be thanking you. If it weren't for you, I never would have gotten such a great opportunity at work. And I've got good news. I'm officially a partner now."

She had only been back in the country for a few months, and already she was a partner. Michael deserved the credit for that.

Michael understood that perfectly well. He stood there looking at her, then slowly walked over. "Whatever you want to do, I'll back you up. Even if you want to start your own company, just based on our business volume alone, it would be more than enough to keep things running. I'm fully behind you."

Isabella smiled but didn't say anything. She sat back down, kept eating, and started peeling shrimp for Clea.