Ch. 2046..2050

Chapter 2046

The director's primary concern was not so much that Isabel could have had some indecent affair with Decker. He was more concerned about Isabel having chased Decker off by hitting him or worse.

Isabel immediately put her acting skills to practice. She flashed a look of confusion. "What? Decker left last night?" The director seemed startled by this as well. "Do you know where he went off to?"

Isabel replied calmly, "| wouldn't know.”

It was the truth. She had no idea where Decker went off to after Roland took her away.

“Okay, I'll call back and check up on him. I'll let you go prepare for your scene.”

“Sure.”

She went to her hotel room. It was a decent and remarkably large room.

After briefly unpacking her luggage, she walked out of her room and went to the designated area where the actors would get their makeup done.

Unfortunately for her, her costumes for the scenes today were all shirts without collars, which meant there was no way she could hide her hickeys.

The good news was that she was friends with the makeup artist. The makeup artist did not cause a scene save for a few giggles, and her hickeys were promptly camouflaged using a layer of foundation.

After her makeup was completed, she made sure to stuff a generous tip to the makeup artist.

The first few scenes were a little iffy since she needed time to find her rhythm.

Fortunately, she had thoroughly gone through the script in advance and was at least familiar with what was needed for her role. After shooting a few more scenes, she got into the rhythm at last. The next two days of the shoot went relatively well.

On a certain evening, the weather was less than cooperative. It was trickling rain all day.

Additionally, there were some issues with the equipment. Isabel and the other actors had to wait for a long time for the equipment to be repaired, and by the time they finished shooting the allocated scenes for the day, it was already dark.

The director decided to wrap up the day and told everyone to head back to the hotel for dinner and rest. By the time the crew unlatched Isabel from the rig suspending her in the air, most of the actors were gone. Only Carla and her bodyguards were still waiting for her.

Carla hurriedly handed her a towel to dry off with, then asked her worriedly, "Are you cold? Do you want some hot water and something to eat?"

"I'm fine. Let's get back to the hotel first.” “Sure.” Accompanied by Carla and her bodyguards, she walked out of the set and back to the hotel they were staying at.

It was not a large hotel, and the place was mostly reserved for film crews. This was one such occasion when the entire place was occupied by a film crew.

The only people in the hotel were either the hotel staff or members of the crew.

After roughly five minutes, Isabel arrived at the hotel with Carla and her bodyguards.

Just as she was about to enter, she noticed a tall figure standing in the rain with an umbrella from the corner of her eye.

He was standing in the open space by the entrance of the hotel. He carried a plastic bag in his free hand and wore a stark black fitted suit. The man looked like a prince from a foreign land. His entire demeanor was graceful and entirely captivating.

Isabel's eyes grew wide open.

Why does he look so much like Roland?

“Wow, who is that man? He's so handsome,” Carla whispered into her ear.

Several actresses drew up closer toward the mirror to steal looks at the handsome stranger outside as well.

Only the two bodyguards following Isabel regarded Roland with poised expressions while the other turned around to look at Isabel.

At the same time, Roland directed his attention toward Isabel as well.

Isabel could immediately feel the sharpness of his gaze like a laser on her. She shivered for some reason, and her cheeks began to redden.

She wanted to escape, but where could she run to? Besides, he was already here, and it would not be wise to run away.

She ducked from his gaze and turned to Carla and the bodyguards. "Go inside. I'll catch up later.” They obliged and went into the hotel.

 

Chapter 2047

Carla eyed Isabel suspiciously. "Is that handsome man over there here to see you?"

Isabel waved her off. 'Yeah, just go in first. Also, help me get those girls crowded by the window out of here as well.” “Understood, I'll head in right now."

Carla went into the hotel and said something to the host of actresses gathered by the window and got them to follow her to give Isabel some privacy.

Meanwhile, Roland walked up to Isabel with the umbrella in hand. He stepped close enough so the umbrella covered both of them.

The two stood very close together under the limited space the umbrella offered.

Isabel could see his face up close. She felt hot all over. With a soft cough, she asked, "Why are you here?”

Roland looked at her with an unchanging expression. "| came to see you."

He lifted the bag in his other hand. "My mother told me to bring some snacks for you to eat."

Isabel's eyes glittered, and she hurriedly took the bag with the snacks and said gratefully, "Thank her for me, please."

Martha was nothing short of a master chef. Not only was the food she made delicious, but even the common snacks she made were several tiers above the other snacks she usually ate. They were Southboro-style snacks.

She had shared the snacks Martha gave her several days ago with her fellow actors on the set, and they had nothing but praises and gobbled everything before she could have her fill herself.

Roland noticed the flash of joy on her face, and his expression seemed to soften briefly as he nodded and grunted. Then, the atmosphere suddenly grew awkward. The only sound they heard was the light patter of the rain against the umbrella.

Isabel started to feel a little awkward with him staring at her. She turned to the side to avoid facing him. She stared at the rain and said dismissively, "Is there anything else you need? If not, you can go home now.”

While her tone sounded rather distant, the chilly weather accentuated the coldness in her voice.

Roland frowned and asked, "Did | hurt you that night?"

Isabel suddenly turned to him when she heard this, and her face wrenched in embarrassment. "What are you talking about?!" She was not made of glass although she had to admit he had been rather rough with her that night.

"Then, why have you been ignoring me these past two days?

’ Roland asked in a puzzled voice.

Isabel immediately avoided his gaze. "I... I've been too busy these two days, and | didn't have my phone with me. | didn't reply to your messages because | didn't even see them.”

Roland took half a step towards her, becoming even closer to her now than before.

He looked into her flickering eyes and asked accusingly, "If you didn't have your phone with you, how did you manage to post videos of you on the set with the other actors?"

Isabel could feel her heart drop.

To avoid having to reply to his text, she had been careful to not post anything on her personal page, but she forgot about her official page!

He must have seen the posts on her official page!

Her mind raced frantically for an excuse and she stammered, "Carla took the video for me, and she posted them on my official page."

Roland stayed silent.

Even though he did not speak, Isabel could feel her heartbeat pulsing rapidly in her ears. It must be her guilt eating away at her. Upon sensing his prolonged silence, she darted a glance at him. She immediately met the clear and earnest look in his eyes.

He stared intently at her, and when he made eye contact with her, he smiled coyly and stated, "You mentioned that you would take responsibility after what happened that night."

Isabel felt her voice caught in her throat, at a loss for what to say.

Roland pressed her, "Aren't you going to take responsibility now?"

His voice was sharp.

A gust of chilly wind blew past them that made Isabel shrink from the cold as she explained wryly, ' No, that's not what | meant."

"Then, what did you mean?"

“Roland, |... | wasn't myself that night. I... I'm sorry, | didn't mean to force you to... with me... His eyes gleamed with cold as he interrupted her, "So, you’re saying that we should pretend that night did not happen at all?’

Isabel could not find the words to explain what was going through her mind, but one thing she knew for certain was that she did not want Roland to be upset with her. She did not want him to think that she was that kind of woman, so she explained frantically, No, no. | just didn’t know how to face you again after what we did.”

Chapter 2048

Chapter 2048 A flash of light darted across his dark eyes.

After a moment, he restored his usual calm demeanor." Well, here | am right in front of you now. Will you tell me how you plan to claim responsibility for that night?"

Isabel bit her lip. She had been thinking about this endlessly over the past two days.

Before he showed up, she even considered buying his silence with a huge cheque and tell him to forget about it, but now that she was facing him and looking at his handsome face, she realized she could not bear to hurt him and could not get the words out.

Doing that was almost certain to wound his pride and feelings.

She opted for a direct approach instead. "How do you expect me to take responsibility?”

She wore a stout, serious expression that held a strange contrast with her doll-like appearance. Roland looked at her silently for a moment, then suddenly lowered his head close toward her. At the same time, he cupped her chin with his palms.

Isabel could feel the warm touch of his fingers pressing against her lips. She was so close to him that her eyes widened immediately.

Her usual instinct in situations like this was to give the man a brutal slap, but now, she had grown stiff and could not move at all.

Then, Roland suddenly released her and pulled away. He looked at her solemnly and stated bluntly, "1 want to be your boyfriend."

Huh?

Boyfriend?

He was trying to date her?

Isabel was too stunned to know how to respond to such a proposition.

After failing to receive an answer from her after a long silence, Roland frowned faintly. He asked in a slightly dejected voice, "Is that a no?"

"No.Jt’s not..." Isabel thought for a moment before stating, ’ Roland, I’m an actress."

"| know."

"| can't get into a relationship."

He refuted her point, "I don't think there are any law or ethical reasons stopping an actor from entering a relationship.” Isabel stammered as she spoke, "I...I’m too busy. | don’t have time for a relationship."

Roland stated, "It’s okay, I’m very busy too. | won't get in the way of your job."

Isabel no longer knew what to say to this.

Roland looked at her intently. His eyes had a blinding glow underneath them that made him resemble a ferocious beast ready to pounce from the fog of the rain. There was a certain all-consuming wildness inside them, and yet there was also a trace of endearment.

Isabel could not make herself refuse him even if she wanted to. It was as if refusing him would suddenly make her a terrible woman that had taken advantage of him.

She took a deep breath and decided at last, "Okay, if you don’t mind being neglected sometimes because I’m too busy with work, then we can start dating."

They were just entering a relationship, not a marriage, thus they could break up any time they wanted to.

He smiled.

Before she knew it, he drew in closer toward her and kissed her on the lips.

She was caught off guard by this gesture.

He could at least give her a hint before kissing her!

His lips were so soft. There was a comfortable warmth that poured into her through his breath. She returned the favor and kissed him as well.

After a while, Roland let go of her. His icy expression softened uncharacteristically with a faint smile, which made him look more handsome than he already was.

Isabel nearly launched herself into his arms, but the rationale part of her knew better. She coughed and pushed away these thoughts, then told him, "It’s getting late. You should go home and rest."

Roland nodded. He stuffed the umbrella into her hand. The rain was getting heavier.

Isabel tried to stop him. "The hotel is right there. It'll take me only a few seconds to run in. You should take the umbrella." He refused, "It's fine. My car is right there."

Chapter 2049

Then, Roland gently brushed his fingers against Isabel's cheeks, and the pitch of his voice dropped slightly. "I'm going now. I'll come to visit you another day."

With that, he stepped out from the shade of the umbrella.

Isabel held back a smile and stared at his quickly departing figure as he trotted toward the car parked by the side of the road. It was only after she watched him open the door and get inside, then drive away that she finally stepped back into the hotel. She had only just stepped inside and barely had time to put away the umbrella when Carla rushed to her.

She looked at Isabel with a wicked smile on her face. "Who is that man? You were just with him for a while, and your face is already so red. What's with that?" she asked as she helped Isabel put the umbrella away.

Isabel looked around and noticed the group of actresses who were gathered by the window just now and gawking at the handsome Roland. It looked like they were out of earshot, so she deemed it safe to tell Carla.

She smiled slyly. ‘That's my boyfriend." “Huh?” Carla was taken aback by the answer and asked, "When did you start dating? How come | didn't know about it?" Isabel admitted, "Just now.”

Carla stifled a laugh. She followed Isabel into the hotel lobby and began prying for more details, "What's his name? What does he do? Where is he from?”

"You've met him." "| have? When?" Carla asked in a queer voice.

"It was more than a year ago. We helped him at the side of the road when his mother was suffering from some medical condition."

Carla suddenly remembered the scene and let out an astonished yelp, "So, that's him! | was wondering why he looked so familiar."

Somehow, one of the actresses heard them and spread the news of Isabel being in a relationship.

The next day, several media-affiliated accounts caught wind of the rumor that Isabel was dating someone. Although none of them knew about the lucky man’s identity, the key phrase "Isabel Ross is in a relationship" was trending by the next morning.

Isabel had just finished shooting a scene when she saw the news.

Amanda called her and asked without beating around the bush, ‘Isabel, are you seeing someone?" Isabel broke out in an astonished voice, ’ How did you know?"

‘The news is spreading online. Everyone is saying that you're in a relationship.”

Isabel processed the information for a while before asking, "Are there any pictures or videos?" “Nothing, | already put our PR team on it."

“Good.”

If there were no sightings of her with Roland, it meant that the rumors would only continue to remain rumors no matter how quickly word spread around. All she needed to do was not acknowledge the rumors and things would die down soon enough.

Amanda sounded concerned. "When did it start? How come | don’t know about it?”

Isabel answered with perfect honesty, "We just started dating last night. | haven't had time to tell you yet."

"You're too careless!"

They only started dating last night, and rumors were already circulating. What else could that be if not carelessness?

Isabel was not bothered.

Just as Roland said, there was nothing wrong with her being in a relationship. It was not illegal nor unethical for a celebrity to date.

She didn't respond to the netizens because she did not want her private affairs to be scrutinized by the public. Even if someone were to photograph her and Roland together, she would remain largely unbothered.

Amanda sighed. Based on what she knew about Isabel, she knew it was not going to fare well if they suggested they break up. She still asked out of curiosity, "Who is he? Someone in the entertainment industry?"

Isabel told her, "He’s not in the industry. He’s around the same age as me and is very handsome.”

When she mentioned that her boyfriend was very handsome, the pitch in her voice rose slightly, enameled with what sounded like pride.

Amanda snickered and advised her, "Alright, just be careful when you see him going forward. Be careful of paparazzi taking pictures."

"| understand, don't worry."

With that, Amanda hung up.

Isabel swiped to her feed to take a quick look.

People were still discussing rumors of her having a boyfriend, but attention revolving around the subject was starting to wane. Most people simply wanted to know who the mysterious boyfriend was. Nobody had any ill intentions.

The rest of them were focused on criticizing the media outlets for breaking the news without any pictures or videos serving as evidence, accusing them of falsifying news for clicks.

Her fans were busy shooting down the false rumors. They claimed she was too busy with her career to date at all.

She estimated that within a few hours, people would come to forget about it. She put away her phone and prepared for her next scene.

Chapter 2050

Meanwhile, in the hotel Decker was staying at, he was swiping on his phone and reading the discussions about Isabel's rumored relationship. A gloomy look showed on his face.

Then, his assistant called him.

He promptly answered and put the phone to his ear, "What is it?"

The assistant told him cordially, "Sir, we found Mr. Rockwell.”

His expression immediately shifted. ‘Where is he now?"

The assistant informed him cautiously, "He’s working at Carter Corporation as the president." Decker scowled.

The President of Carter Corporation.

His face darkened gravely when he recalled the way Isabel had thrown herself at Roland when she was drugged the other night. This explained how Isabel managed to take back the female lead that he initially seized from her and gave to Isabella.

So, this was the sort of man she had backing her. They have been together since a while ago! This introduced some more questions. "Why did the Carters install an outsider as the president?" he asked inextricably.

The assistant remarked, "| heard that Odell Carter initially handed the reins to his daughter, but his daughter was not interested in handling the operation, so she ended up hiring Mr. Rockwell to do it for her. Over the past year, Mr. Rockwell has been performing very well and increased the revenue by a wide margin. They say everyone in the corporation is pleased with his performance."

The look in Decker's eyes sharpened upon receiving this information. He stewed in silence for a while before answering, "Alright."

He briskly hung up. Then, he stood next to the window and looked at the bustling street outside. His expression was dark and somber, his eyes sharp and hostile.

He was not expecting the same Roland Rockwell, who he spent so much effort on banishing out of Southboro, to have managed such a tremendous comeback in Westchester. He was actually the president of Carter Corporation!

To make matters worse, he was involved with Isabel!

He could not afford to be lax any longer.

He had to get rid of Roland somehow and take Isabel back! Two more days passed in a blink of an eye.

Around evening when it was getting dark outside, Isabel and the crew wrapped up their shooting for the day and returned to the hotel. Isabel was accompanied by Carla and the two bodyguards.

When she got to the hotel, she saw several actresses who had gotten back to the hotel earlier than her. They were all lurking behind the entrance and spying on someone outside.

Unsurprisingly, the person they were gawking at was none other than Roland.

He wore a handsomely fitted suit, tailored with the finest fabric. He stood near the open field by the entrance and had a container in hand while his expression was stoic and cool as usual.

That was until he noticed Isabel.

Then, his eyes transformed with a tender glow.

Isabel was not expecting him to show up after a mere two days. She was not upset. On the contrary, she was glad to see him. "Carla, why don't you-"

"| understand."

Before she could finish her sentence, Carla led the two bodyguards into the hotel. She also chased away the other actresses who were peeping at Roland from inside the hotel.

Roland approached Isabel. Isabel went to him as well, and they closed the gap between them in no time. Isabel broke the ice. "Aren't you supposed to be busy? Why are you here again?"

"| have some time today." Roland handed her the container. "My mother made some food for you.”

Isabel took it gladly, and as usual, told him, "Thank her for me, please.”

Roland nodded, then he looked at her dotingly.

Isabel felt rather shy with him staring at her like that, so she asked sheepishly, "Why are you looking at me like that?" "Because | like to," he said bluntly.

Isabel was speechless. Her cheeks ballooned with redness.

After a stiff silence, she muttered, "Thanks for the food. You can go home now."

Roland fell silent.

She asked warily, "What's the matter? Do you need something else?"

"| want to spend a little more time with you," he said sincerely with a genuine look in his eyes.

It sounded very innocent when it came out of his lips.

Isabel considered for a moment before suggesting, "All of the crew is inside the hotel. Let's just sit in your car for a bit." "Sure."

His car was parked nearby. They approached his car, and Roland opened the door for her.

She burrowed herself inside.