Chapter 56

"Mr. Diaz, you're really in the mood!" The courtyard gate flew open, and a bunch of people barged in.

Chris was fooling around with Thalia. To keep him happy, Thalia had stripped down completely. Chris was also naked, thanks to her.

Chris looked at the newcomers, all strangers, and knew they were here to stir up trouble. He tried to be nice, "Hey folks, this is my private spot. How about you head to another hot spring pool? I'll cover the cost."

"Mr. Diaz," the leader, David Jones, took off his sunglasses and sneered, "Oh, that's really gross."

He quickly put his sunglasses back on and continued, "Mr. Diaz, we're here to ask you to find a better spot. The water here is too hot,making people cranky."

"No need. I'm quite comfy here," Chris played dumb and refused.

"Mr. Diaz, this is getting pointless. We don't want to make things hard for you. We're trying to save your dignity. But if you don't cooperate,don't blame us for being rude," David said coldly.

Thalia clung to Chris's arm, acting all scared. "Mr. Diaz, look at them, they're so scary!"

"Who are you people?" Chris shouted, "If you don't leave, I'll call the cops."

"What have we done?" David spread his hands innocently and said,"Mr.

Diaz, we're just asking you to change places, and you want to call the cops?

Fine! Go ahead, call the cops!"

As he spoke, he handed his phone to Chris.

Chris didn't dare take it! He had no choice but to say, "I'Il go with you."

Chris reluctantly got up and dressed, taking forever to fasten his belt, his eyes darting around, ready to bolt.

David had already noticed his intentions but pretended not to see.

After a failed escape attempt, Chris was stripped down to just his underwear.

"You can't do this to me. This is a crime," Chris shouted.

"Oh, a crime? Go ahead, Mr. Diaz, report us. Do you have any evidence?"David mocked and then ordered him,"Shut him up with his own sock."

Chris hesitated, and two burly men stepped forward. One pinched his mouth open, and the other disdainfully picked up a sock from the ground and stuffed it into Chris's mouth.

David, losing interest, waved dismissively and asked his guys to throw Chris into a beat-up car and take him down the hill.

The car stopped shortly after.

Chris was thrown to the ground. He recognized the familiar scenery; it was outside the villa where he held parties.

Chris finally understood and asked, "Are you Isabella's people?"

"It's cold. Have a drink, Mr. Diaz," a familiar voice came through. Then Chris saw a tall man walking through the crowd; it was Isabella's man.Michael.

Following Michael's words, David immediately forced a drink on Chris.

"What did you make me drink?" Chris asked.

"Nothing, just something you like," Michael said indifferently.

"Aren't you afraid I'll ruin Isabella's project?" Chris threatened.

"I'm afraid, so I've decided to replace you," Michael said nonchalantly.

"What do you mean?" Chris asked, confused.

Michael gestured, and Aaron stepped forward, handing Chris a stack of documents.

Chris took the documents and saw they were about the acquisition of Globa1 Innovators Inc.

Just then, the drug kicked in, and Chris was in agony, begging on his knees.

"Go cool off in the water!" Michael said coldly, "Then I'll think about sparing you."

Hearing this, Chris scrambled into the creek.

Aaron told David, "Keep an eye on him, and don't let him die."

When Michael got back to the hot spring courtyard, Isabella was still asleep.

He stripped down, his body chilled, and lay down beside her.

"Where did you go? You're so cold!" Isabella turned over and snuggled up

to Michael, warming his icy body.

Afraid of chilling her, Michael tried to push her away but found she clung to him like an octopus, and he couldn't pry her off. She had already fallen asleep.

Michael smiled helplessly, thinking, 'Oh well, it won't take long to warm up.

In the morning, Isabella woke up naturally.

She dreamed of holding abig furnace, unable to let go, sweating all over.

However, her cold symptoms were gone, and she felt refreshed and much better.

She saw a message from Olivia on her phone, complaining about how awful her cold was.

Isabella quickly called Olivia back.

The moment she answered the phone, Olivia complained,"Isabella,you don't know how miserable I am. My eyes are tearing, and my nose is stuffy.My throat hurts, and my whole body feels like it's been beaten.Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Mr. Johnson took me to the hot springs, so I'm perfectly fine,"Isabella felt a bit guilty hearing how bad Olivia was while she was perfectly fine.

"Isabella, what are you doing? Showing off how loving you and Michael are early in the morning?" Olivia wailed on the phone, "I want to get married too. I want my husband to take me to the hot springs. My husband, where are you? I'm waiting for you so desperately."

Isabella on the other end of the line was amused by Olivia.

In the kitchen, Eric, who was cooking for Olivia, was so startled that he dropped the pot lid.

"Olivia, what's that noise?" Isabella, thinking Olivia was alone in the dorm,felt uneasy.

"Nothing. I just knocked something over by accident. Seriously," Olivia stammered.

"Be careful. Olivia. I should have gone with you so we could look after each other," Isabella said guiltily.

"Isabella, are you out of your mind? Leaving a big villa with servants to squeeze into this crappy dorm with me?" Olivia perfectly echoed Eric's words to Isabella.

Eric, having calmed down, walked out of the kitchen and said to Olivia,who was sprawling out on the couch, "Wash your hands and get ready to eat."

Isabella was startled, asking, "Olivia, is there someone else in the dorm?"

Olivia glared at Eric and quickly explained on the phone, "No, Isabella,don't overthink it. It's just the TV."

Then Olivia hung up the phone.

The more Isabella thought about it, the more something felt off. She thought, 'There is no TV in the dorm! And why was Olivia so nervous?That voice sounded so familiar.'

On the other end, Olivia hung up the phone and shouted at Eric, "I was on the phone. Why did you have to talk?"

Eric replied, "Why can't I talk?"

"Your talking will make Isabella misunderstand," Olivia said angrily.

"You're sick, and I kindly brought you to my place to take care of you.There's nothing improper between us, so why worry about misunderstandings? Or do you think there is and you're afraid of getting caught?" Eric stared into Olivia's eyes, gradually closing in, questioning her.

"Let's eat first. I'll make you coffee when we get to work," Olivia said and fled under Eric's intense gaze.