Chapter 1711
No.1
His collar was torn messily.
His handsome face was flushed red.
He was drunk.
Very drunk.
She realized he had trapped them both inside.
“Open the door right now!” Her voice was ice-cold. “Let me out!”
Alexander leaned against the door, his gaze sincere.
“Isabella, don’t go. Hear me out…” His words slurred slightly. “I was wrong all these years. I shouldn’t have manipulated you from the start. I shouldn’t have let Victoria hurt you. You can hit me. Yell at me. Do whatever you want.”
He stepped forward and grabbed her hand.
Isabella dodged his advance with practiced ease, stepping back to create distance.
No.2
Alexander froze, his expression crumbling. A bitter laugh escaped his lips. “I know you despise me. Denying my blame would be a lie. Today, I kept thinking…if I could turn back time, if I had another chance, everything would be different now. But it’s still not too late.”
He dropped to one knee, pulling a velvet ring box from his pocket. The diamond inside caught the light, glittering coldly.
“Marry me, Isabella. I’ll agree to any condition. Testify against Victoria? I’ll do it. A prenuptial agreement? We’ll sign one immediately. Just say yes.”
His words were slurred from alcohol, but his eyes held a desperate, sober intensity. This was his only path to redemption, the sole way to erase years of regret. He was certain she would accept.
Isabella’s gaze was pure ice. She looked down at him as if he were something foul stuck to her shoe. “The great Alexander Whitmore, on his knees for me? Weren’t you the one who swore you’d never want me, even if I were royalty?”
The memory of those cruel words, spoken five years ago, hit him like a physical blow. Victoria had poisoned his mind back then. He’d been blind to the truth, blind to the fact that Victoria had forced Isabella to hide her beauty.
“I was a fool,” he choked out, a sob catching in his throat. “Blind and stupid. You can hate me. You can punish me.”
A harsh, mocking laugh tore from her lips. “You think this pathetic display is sincere? You believe it moves me? You’re nothing but a drunken fool, a pathetic cuckold who got what he deserved! Do you even love me? If I’d returned from Africa looking the same, without the diamond mine, without this fame…would you be here? Would you be kneeling?”
The hand holding the ring trembled violently.
She leaned closer, her voice a venomous whisper. “You don’t love me. You love the glamorous illusion. You miss the woman who truly loved you, the one you kicked down a flight of stairs. This version of me will never be yours.”
No.3
In one swift, brutal motion, she raised her leg and drove her heel into his chest.
The force was immense, echoing the violence he’d once inflicted on her.
Thud!
He crashed to the floor, the ring skittering away into the shadows.
Isabella didn’t even flinch. She stepped over him, her posture regal and utterly cold.
As she reached for the door, he scrambled up. Drunk and enraged, he lunged, grabbing her arm and slamming her against the wall. His fingers dug into her shoulders.
“You’re not mine, so you belong to Nathaniel?!” he roared, his eyes bloodshot. “You think he actually wants you? He’s playing with you! He’ll discard you! I don’t care that you’ve been with him! I don’t even care about the child! What right do you have to reject me? What right?!”
He shook her violently. Her back slammed into the unyielding wall, pain radiating through her. The world spun from the force of his rage.
It took her a moment to focus. Her eyes met his, filled with a contempt so deep it was paralyzing.
He had ignored her at their engagement party. He had slept with Victoria that very night.
No.4
Why this desperate begging now?
Alexander actually dared to question her and Nathaniel?
He even used that disrespectful tone?
“What if I refuse you?” Isabella sneered. “What if I’m with Nathaniel? A man like you doesn’t stand a chance!”
She raised her hand to push him away, but Alexander seized her wrists and snarled, “Isabella! Nathaniel will never marry you! He wouldn’t even waste a moment on you if he knew your history! He would despise you! Marry me, be with me, and I can pretend none of this ever happened—”
“Hah! Do you believe everyone is like you? Do you think all men are as selfish as you are?” Isabella met his gaze and enunciated each word with cold clarity. “You discarded Victoria the instant you discovered her past with Harrison. But did you ever consider why she acted that way? If it weren’t for your own actions, she never would have done those things! You are nothing but a selfish, disgusting, narcissistic man! Nathaniel is nothing like you!”
Her expression softened slightly at the mention of Nathaniel. “He knew I was assaulted five years ago. I know you would have abandoned me immediately if you were in his position. Nathaniel chose to help me investigate what happened. He never once looked down on me! So you have no chance with someone like me anymore. The moment I agree, he will marry me without hesitation!”
Her voice was sharp and filled with contempt as she shoved him away with surprising strength.
Alexander was thrown back onto the nearby sofa like a broken marionette. He made no move to get up, his eyes wide with stunned disbelief. Nathaniel… Nathaniel knew everything? And instead of casting her aside, he helped her? How? Why? How could Nathaniel not despise Isabella?
The scent of alcohol still clung to Isabella’s clothes even after she left The Grand Monarch. She stopped at a boutique to buy a new jacket before riding her motorcycle back toward Rosewood Manor.
No.5
The image of Alexander’s devastated face replayed in her mind during the ride home. A deep sense of satisfaction settled within her. Finally. That despicable man got exactly what he deserved. Perfect karma.
Yet, something felt incomplete. It wasn't until she was nearly at Rosewood Manor that she remembered her promise to Oliver. She had promised to celebrate with them when she got home, and she had returned empty-handed.
She pulled over to the side of the road and called Maxwell. “Get a bottle of Silas’s special reserve sent over immediately. The good one.”
“That’s difficult,” Maxwell replied. “You know how he is about his wine collection. He guards it like his life.”
“Just tell him I’ve hit a wall with the autonomous drone navigation system,” Isabella insisted. “I need some… inspiration.”
“That might work. I’ll relay the message right away.”
“Wait,” Isabella added. “Also, get a bottle of Peach Nectar on the way.”
The Peach Nectar was one of Silas’s original creations. Every year during the peak of the peach blossom season, he would personally collect the morning dew from the petals, along with the most perfect blossom from each tree, to ferment into a delicate, fragrant essence. The alcohol content was low, but the peach flavor was intense and refreshing, its aroma instantly uplifting.
Maxwell let out a low chuckle. “I can already picture Silas having a heart attack.”
Isabella smiled and ended the call. Today had been immensely satisfying, the most in years. Celebration was absolutely necessary. She could always help Silas collect more peach blossoms next season to make it up to him.
No.6
A light, cheerful feeling accompanied her as she finally entered Rosewood Manor. She was greeted by the sight of Oliver fast asleep on the sofa.
Meanwhile, Nathaniel…
Nathaniel was focused on his laptop.
From her position, Isabella could clearly see the screen.
It displayed photos of her leaving The Grand Monarch.
There were also images of Alexander Whitmore.
Had Nathaniel sent people to follow her?
He heard the door open and turned quickly.
His eyes narrowed as he quietly closed the laptop.
"You're home," he stated.
No.7
Isabella nodded and locked the door behind her.
She entered the room casually.
"I saw everything," she said nonchalantly.
Had she really seen it all?
Nathaniel frowned deeply.
Did she see the images? Did she know he had her followed?
He pushed the thought aside.
His gaze swept over her critically.