Ch. 2161..2165
Chapter 2161
Chapter 2161 After finishing the movie, Isabel fell asleep with her arms wrapped around Roland like he was a pillow. He smiled faintly and gently carried her in his arms to take her to the bedroom.
Shortly after that, he reached her bedroom where he carefully took off her coat and shoes for her. Then, he tucked her under a thick blanket and pecked a gentle kiss on her cheeks before retreating from the bedroom.
With that, he went down the corridor leading to his study. After making himself comfortable, he called his assistant.
After the call was connected, he instructed, "Tell Decker that | will help him take care of the situation at Rockwell Corporation in the shortest time possible. | only have one condition, and that is that | want half of his shares in Rockwell Corporation."
His assistant replied dutifully, "Alright, sir, I'll speak to him right now."
Roland set aside his phone with a dark, insidious look in his eyes. He turned on the computer and went over his drafted plan on how to turn around the dire situation at Rockwell Corporation; it was a plan he had drafted long ago.
It was about time he took back what was rightfully his.
At the Rockwells', Decker received a call from his assistant, Marcus, and raised his voice to a sharp screech, "What? He wants half of my shares in Rockwell Corporation?"
Marcus answered in a low, solemn voice, "Yes, Mr. Rockwell, what do you say?" Decker clenched his jaw and became sullen.
He was the largest shareholder of Rockwell Corporation, accounting for up to 80% of the shares, half of which was entrusted to him by Master Rockwell. Meanwhile, the other half was forcefully taken away from Roland no thanks to Master Rockwell and the Houstons.
If this mysterious Mr. Bright were to take half of his shares, that meant both of them would be equal majority shareholders with 40% of the company shares respectively...
This meant that both of them would wield the same amount of power in the corporation. With the way things were...
He considered the fact that Roland only owned 10% of the company shares while the remaining minority shareholders accounted for up to another 10% of the company shares. This thought brought him some relief at least.
As long as he was still the majority shareholder and Roland's shares were less than his, he had nothing to worry about. He would always have the final say in the corporation!
After a long, ruminative silence, Decker told Marcus, " Alright, deal. Of course, on the premise that he can help us Sail through this crisis."
“Alright, I'll speak to him right away."
With that, Decker hung up. He slumped into his chair like a deflated balloon.
Clarice, who was in the room with him the entire time, approached him with a concerned look. She asked cautiously, "Decker, are you sure you want to give him half of the shares? Can't you negotiate the terms?"
Decker kept his head on the ground with a hand pressed against his forehead. His entire demeanor was grim, and he was not in the mood to talk.
Rockwell Corporation was about to face bankruptcy. If he still held on stubbornly to his shares at such a crucial hour, he would be subject to countless scrutiny and mockery in time.
Clarice felt pained to see him in such a state. She gently massaged his shoulders and apologized to him, "I’m sorry for not being able to help you, Decker."
"| don't blame you. It’s not your fault. Can you give me some alone time? Go get some rest."
It took everything he had to muster these words, to suppress his emotions.
Deep down, he wanted to shout at her and call her a useless fool, but he knew that the Houstons were still a significant household in Southboro. Chances were he was still going to need their help in the future, so he could not risk burning
bridges. “Okay.” Clarice let him be. The moment she walked out, she frowned.
She had always known Decker as a charismatic man who was the embodiment of masculinity and strength. He was a successful man who was excellent at managing his business empire.
He was at the helm of Rockwell Corporation, and she had always thought that this was the only man in Southboro worthy enough of taking her hand in marriage.
The recent events had soured her impression of the man. She still had affection for him, but she had to admit she was not fond of a man who had to submit to another man.
She wondered who the rumored Mr. Bright was. What was this miracle worker who could save Rockwell Corporation from such an unsalvageable crisis made of? Someone who could be bold enough to claim that he could do it right away?
Hopefully, it was not a bluff.
Chapter 2162
Chapter 2162 Several days later, at the seaside mansion, it was evening and it was drizzling outside.
Roland went to his study after he returned home from work. He had been pretty busy these days, so Isabel was not too bothered.
She looked at the clock and noticed that it was almost dinner time. She wrapped up the livestream she set up for her fans and prepared to leave her bedroom.
Rox happened to show up at that juncture. "Miss Isabel, dinner is ready." Isabel told her politely, "Got it. I'll tell Roland myself. Why don’t you get back to it?”
She knew that Rox was intimidated by Roland. It was probably a combination of his stoic temper as well as the usual power dynamic factor.
Rox nodded and went downstairs. Isabel went down the corridor to Roland's study.
She was about to knock on the door to announce her entry when she heard Roland’s voice on the phone coming through the door, "Tell them that I'll be there in person to sign to documents tomorrow at noon.
"| have some other work to get to. Tell the lawyer to sort out the documents first." With that, he hung up the phone.
Isabel peered through the crack of the door and noticed him going over stacks of documents. She wondered what he was so busy with lately.
She pursed her lips and suddenly hesitated to knock. With that, she withdrew her hand away from the door and resorted to texting him instead.
"Dinner is ready. Remember to come down to eat when you're done."
Since he was occupied with work, she decided against interrupting him, lest she get in the way of his work.
He should read the text after he wrapped up whatever he was busy with.
With that, she went downstairs to the dining room by herself.
She saw a sumptuous dinner fit for a king set on the table. It was prepared by a crew of professional chefs from Southboro. It was a little less homely than Martha's but was certainly comparable in taste.
After she finished her meal by herself, she returned to her room. She took a quick shower and changed into a set of clean pajamas before throwing herself on the bed and began aimlessly scrolling on her phone.
She had not been invited to any notable events for celebrities of late. Chances were it was because all the industry insiders were aware of her negative affiliation with Clarice and were under the assumption that she was off limits.
Truth be told, she was not too bothered by it, but her fans thought otherwise. Furthermore, some accounts had been spreading senseless rumors everywhere, so the information that Clarice was targeting her had been publicized.
She had set up the livestream this evening specifically to assure her fans that everything was fine. She insisted that she was only taking a long break and only barely managed to convince her fans.
Just like that, her livestream had become a trending topic.
Most of the sentiments around her livestream were rather commonplace. There was nothing controversial or scandalous said about it.
Some of the media outlets must be having a slow day since they began to make unfounded claims that she was only putting ona fake smile and refusing to acknowledge that she was going through a tough break.
Her smile during the livestream was as genuine as it could be, so where did they get that impression from? She could not be bothered to engage with them and promptly closed her social media app after glancing through the comments.
Ding!
She received a sudden text from Amanda.
"Hey, Isabel, how have you been doing in Southboro recently?"
Isabel replied, "I’m doing great"
"| see."
Isabel could sense something was up and asked unprompted, "What's going on?"
Amanda sounded rather depressed. "Nothing, it’s just that there’s not much going on lately, and | feel kind of empty." Isabel teased her lightly, "Why, is Carter Tech City not paying you enough?"
Amanda clarified, "No, it's nothing like that. What Carter Tech City is paying us is enough to get us through this year more than comfortably. It’s just that I’m not very used to these carefree days with not much to do."
Awhile ago, Isabel had asked Liam for help. Liam ended up employing the help of Amanda's firm for Carter Tech City's marketing and paid them a generous sum that was far more than the agent fees Isabel paid her when she still had regular endorsements and contracts. Isabel had done this so that Amanda would not feel so depressed about what had been going on lately.
It was Isabel fronting the bill since she would transfer the appropriate amount to Liam every month. However, Liam would not take her money and gave it back to her every time.
Amanda must have grown concerned because she saw what people were saying online about Isabel.
Isabel told her, "If you’re really that bored, you can help me give those fools a stern scolding for me and tell them to stop making up false rumors."
Chapter 2163
Chapter 2163 Amanda jested, "I'm not you."
She may not have been a public figure the way Isabel was as a celebrity, but she was still a notable figure in the industry, heralded as one of the best agents around. This made her a public figure of sorts. Therefore, there was not a chance she would pluck the courage to start telling people off online the way Isabel would.
She followed it up with another text. "Anyway, this is not the main reason | contacted you. | wanted to ask you about something that | heard was going down at Rockwell Corporation. Is all of it true?"
Isabel was taken aback by this. Had news about Rockwell Corporation spread to the entertainment industry as well?
Amanda must have been checking up on her because she was concerned about her. After all, if something bad were to happen to Rockwell Corporation, Roland would not be safe from the blowback which would subsequently affect Isabel as well.
While she was thinking about how she should respond, Amanda sent yet another text. "Are you sure things are okay down at Southboro? Your boyfriend hasn’t been lashing out at you because of what's been going on at Rockwell Corporation, has he?"
Isabel chuckled. This was what Amanda was worried about! She assured her, "No, he's not going to lose his temper and vent his frustration on me because of work."
Besides, Roland was not that kind of person, not even close. No matter how upset he got, he would not use her as a subject to release his anger.
On the contrary, he was as gentle as they came.
On the outside, he may appear to be distant and stoic, but deep down he was a very gentle and sweet man.
Amanda was relieved. "Alright, that's good to know. Anyway, | have an appointment at the salon. I'll talk to you some other time." "Sure."
Just when Isabel was about to put her phone away, she noticed a tall and lean figure appearing from the corner of her eye.
She looked up and noticed that it was Roland standing by the bed, watching her. She was surprised to see him and asked brazenly, "When did you show up?”
"| just got here." Roland looked at her phone and asked nonchalantly, "Who were you talking to?" "It’s Amanda. She texted me to ask how | was doing in Southboro," Isabel told him.
Upon taking another look at her expression, Roland could tell that she was not very bothered by what people were saying about her online at all. He pursed his lips and grunted, "Hm."
Athought occurred to Isabel, she asked, "Are you finished with work already?"
"Yeah."
“Have you had dinner yet?"
"| have." He continued standing next to the bed and stared at her strangely.
Isabel could sense that something was up and prompted him, "Is there anything else you want to tell me?" "Can you go somewhere with me tomorrow morning?"
This stirred her curiosity. "Where are we going?”
An icy glimmer of light shone past his eyes as he said solemnly, "Rockwell Corporation."
It sounded like they were headed to the frontlines of the battlefield.
Isabel was not expecting this.
She thought about how busy he had been lately and connected the dots with what he mentioned about his plan to take over Rockwell Corporation. With that, she smiled radiantly and agreed, "Sure.”
She knew next to nothing about what was going on in the business world or about the details of his plans to seize Rockwell Corporation. Despite all that, she knew that the best thing she could do was to offer him her solidarity, to stand by his side.
At the very least, he would not have to face the battle all alone. Roland smiled faintly. "Thank you, Isabel."
"You're welcome."
"|... There's one more thing." His ears suddenly turned red. Isabel asked suspiciously, "What’s the matter?"
"Can | spend the night with you?" There was a sudden vulnerable, even affectionate look in his eyes while he was expectantly waiting for her answer.
Although she had been living with him for some time, they still slept in separate rooms. Whenever they wanted to get it on, he would have to ask for her permission.
Right now... Alright then, especially considering what was about to go down tomorrow.
She nudged herself to one side of the bed and patted the space next to her while motioning. "Come."
Chapter 2164
Inside Master Rockwell's study at the Rockwell household, the gray-haired Master Rockwell was speaking to Decker. He held onto his cane tightly, and his expression was grave.
"So, you're going to sign over half of your shares to this Mr. Bright tomorrow. Are you sure about that?"
Decker frowned, the reluctance written clear across his face, but he had no alternatives. "I have no choice in this matter. | have to."
He had already signed the agreement Mr. Bright had sent over to him last week. The agreement clearly stated that if Mr. Bright managed to inject the crucial capital needed to relieve Rockwell Corporation's current financial difficulty, Roland would yield half of his shares in the corporation to Mr. Bright. If he failed to meet his end of the agreement, he would have to repay double the amount of Mr. Bright's investment in Rockwell Corporation.
Mr. Bright had fulfilled his end of the deal, and things at Rockwell Corporation were stable at last thanks to the massive amount of funds he injected into their market. Furthermore, the rumors about his talent in business were understated if anything else. He had drawn up intricate short -term and long-term plans, and the operations at Rockwell Corporation were expected to revert to normal in no time.
The other shareholders were in full agreement with the deal of splitting shares to Mr. Bright as well. Even Roland, who was. always a thorn in his side, was surprisingly cordial and signed the agreement without protest.
With that, he no longer had a say in the matter and had to do what was expected of him. Master Rockwell sighed gravely. "Alright, 111 go with you tomorrow morning.”
He wanted to see with his eyes what sort of person this legendary Mr. Bright was. This supposed miracle worker not only possessed otherworldly wealth but also had a brilliant knack for business strategy.
“Alright, I'll be heading out for now unless you have something else to say."
"Go."
Decker turned and left.
As soon as he left the study, he stumbled into Clarice who was waiting in the hallway.
She wore a frilly dress and posed gracefully by the railing. When she noticed Decker stepping out of the study, she flashed an endearing smile at him.
Decker frowned instinctively and had to suppress his growing irritation. He went up to her and asked with a feigned smile, "Why are you up so late?"
"| can't sleep." Clarice took his hand and said tenderly," Decker, let me go with you tomorrow when you sign the agreement with Mr. Bright."
Her entire demeanor was gentle and endearing. Decker hesitated briefly.
It suddenly occurred to him that he could certainly leverage Clarice's status as a member of the Houstons. Perhaps it could help to bolster his might and intimidate this mysterious Mr. Bright even if just a little.
"That's wonderful. | would love to have you with me." He smiled and took her into his arms. He reiterated his point as if he was worried it was not convincing enough, "I'd feel so much better with you there with me."
Clarice smiled tenderly. “I'm your fiancee. It's the least | can do for you."
For what it was worth, she was being perfectly genuine. She was aware of her status as a Houston and how it would boost appearances during their meeting with Mr. Bright.
In truth, there was another reason she wanted to go. She wanted to see for herself who this mysterious Mr. Bright was. What sort of man could be so venerated?
After the night's rain, the weather the next morning was nothing short of delightful. The sun rose across the clear horizon and washed the landscape with an amber glow.
Isabel usually slept until she woke up naturally, but she had taken special care to set up an alarm today since she did not want to be late for the meeting.
Her alarm rang the same moment Roland woke up. Roland was going to reach over to turn off the alarm for her, but she snatched the phone away.
After turning off the alarm herself, she sat up and stretched.
While Roland smiled faintly, he looked at her with warmth in his eyes and told her, "It's still early. You can sleep a little longer." "No need, I'm fully rested." With that, she threw off the blanket and got out of bed. Roland did not protest. He got up as well and returned to his room to get ready for the day.
Isabel showered and went through her usual routine, all while paying attention to how long she was taking. She put on a light and fashionable coat of makeup and fitted herself into a stylish white dress that was suitable for a business occasion. At last, she put on a pair of high heels before walking out of her room.
She saw Roland waiting for her as soon as she stepped into the hallway.
He wore his usual outfit of a white shirt and a black tie paired with a black suit, finished off with polished leather shoes. As simple as it was, it perfectly complemented his elegant flair, and he looked dashing as always.
She smiled the moment she saw him. Then, she approached him and twirled in a circle in front of him. "Hey, does this work?" She was not very accustomed to business settings and was not sure if what she wore was appropriate.
Roland smiled and seemed completely mesmerized. Then, he reached forward and took Isabel by her waist to pull her closer to him.
"You look beautiful," he said sweetly.
Isabel blushed and gently shoved him before he started hatching perverted ideas. "I'm not asking you if | look good. Is it okay if | dress like this to our meeting at Rockwell Corporation?"
Roland's ears were flushed with red by this point. "Of course, it's perfect."
Chapter 2165
Isabel smiled. "Okay."
In that case, she would go in this outfit.
They ate a simple breakfast, then they walked out of the house together. Roland's driver, his bodyguard, and his assistant, Marcus, were already waiting. Isabel got into the car with him.
They drove out of the area and were on their way toward Rockwell Corporation. As they were nearing their destination, Isabel could no longer stifle the urge to ask," Roland, will you tell me the main reason you want me to come with you today?”
She thought it was better if she knew what to expect, lest she get caught off guard by anything that happened. Roland took her hand and said softly, "I just wanted you to be with me when | sign the contract."
"Just for a contract signing? Nothing other than that?"
"Yes."
"Alright." So, all she needed to do was to stand behind him and watch.
She relaxed a little.
Shortly after that, the car stopped at the parking lot outside the Rockwell Corporation building.
Roland was not in any particular rush to step out of the car. He took a glance at the time.
Marcus informed him promptly as well, "Sir, we still have fifteen minutes until the appointed time. Should we go inside now or later?"
Roland told him, "Let's wait until there's five minutes left.”
"Sure."
That meant they still had ten minutes to kill.
Isabel checked the time on the display on her phone. It was 9:15. This meant that the appointed time was 9:30.
She wondered who Roland was going to sign the contract with.
She kept her curiosity to herself, knowing that her questions would be answered later, then she looked outside to distract herself. She noticed a very expensive-looking retro-styled luxury car parked next to them.
It was not the kind of car suited for the taste of ordinary young people these days. Judging by the looks of it, it was very expensive and based on her knowledge, Decker was the only one in Rockwell Corporation known for having such eccentric taste in cars. He was probably the only one who would drive something flashy like this to work.
Meanwhile, Marcus, who had also been vigilantly paying attention to their surroundings, motioned at the car. "Sir, | think this is Master Rockwell's car."
Roland muttered indifferently, "Yeah."
Isabel was taken aback.
Master Rockwell?
Did he mean the old grandfather of the Rockwells? In other words, Roland’s grandfather? Even Master Rockwell was going to be present!
She found herself darting a curious glance at Roland while instinctively tightening her grip on his hand.
Roland must have noticed her sudden change in mood. He turned to her with a quickly softening look in his eyes. Til be fine," he assured her.
Isabel settled at ease as well. "Alright."
It seemed like he was expecting his grandfather to show up as well.
What exactly was the contract about that it would warrant the attendance of Master Rockwell himself?
Isabel suddenly found herself looking forward to seeing what this was all about.
Meanwhile, inside the largest and most luxuriously decorated VIP room inside Rockwell Corporation, Master Rockwell, Decker, Clarice, all the senior shareholders of Rockwell Corporation, as well as the lawyers, were in attendance.
Master Rockwell sat at the head of the table with a solemn expression.
Decker sat next to him. He seemed very anxious and would be caught glancing outside the window from time to time. Clarice was next to him and seemed relatively calm.
Just like everyone else in attendance, she would glance outside from time to time.
The appointed time for their contract signing was quickly approaching, hence the legendary Mr. Bright should be here any moment.