Chapter 98

When Isabella woke up, Michael was already up and dressed, sitting by the bed and texting away.

Noticing she was awake, Michael put his phone down, walked over, and helped her sit up. Isabella felt weak, so Michael gently helped her get dressed. Her skin was covered in red marks, and feeling embarrassed, she quickly grabbed her clothes and put them on.

Michael smiled softly at her and whispered, "Isabella, it's just sex. No need to be so shy."

Michael took Isabella home, gave Ava and Robert some instructions, and left her with a deep kiss. He mentioned he had some business to take care of.

Jerry quickly packed a small suitcase for him, and without even going upstairs,they left.

Since Isabella had a leg injury, Michael approved a week off for her through the company's management platform.

During that week, Michael was rarely around, and Isabella quietly stayed home to recover. After a week, the bandage came off,revealing a neatly scabbed-over wound that itched but caused no significant pain.

On Monday morning, Robert dropped Isabella off at the company entrance.Watching her go inside, he snapped a photo of her back and sent it to Michael before driving away.

Seeing this,Jeremy couldn't help but sigh, "I just don't get Michael. If he's into someone else, why does he care so much about Isabella? But if he's not,why keep her a secret?"

As soon as Isabella got to the office, Giselle walked over, looking concerned."Isabella, are you okay?"

Isabella thought her colleagues knew about Aiden's betrayal, and she blushed. quickly shaking her head. "I'm fine."

Giselle sighed in relief. "I'm glad you're okay. Seeing you gone for so long.I thought Mr. Wright fired you to save face! Don't let it get to you. People will talk, but as long as you haven't done anything wrong, there's nothing to worry about."

Isabella was puzzled by Giselle's words. It didn't seem like she was talking about her family issues. She wondered if something had happened while she was away.

"Why would Mr. Wright fire me?" Isabella asked.

"Isabella, you don't know? There's been a rumor going around the company about you and Mr. Wright..." Giselle hesitated, touching her index fingers together, "having an inappropriate relationship."

Isabella's eyes widened in shock. She stood up from her chair, pointing at herself in disbelief. "Me and Mr. Wright? We barely see each other. What kind of rumor is that?"

Giselle shared what she had heard. "At first, it was just a rumor about you and Mr. Wright being close. People listened but didn't take it seriously.But the day after the rumor started, you took a leave of absence, and it was said your leave was irregular, but no one dared to say anything."

"My leave? What's wrong with it?" Isabella asked,confused.

Giselle nodded seriousy. "The company policy requires a three-level approval for leaves longer than two days. Your leave was processed directly through the attendance platform's backend. Only a few people have access to that: the chairman, Mr. Johnson, Ms. Johnson, and Mr.

Wright. So, everyone guessed it was Mr.Wright."

Isabella murmured, "I can explain the leave. My husband knows Mr.Wright, and since there was an issue at home, he probably asked Mr.Wright to help with the leave. But who started this ridiculous rumor about me and Mr. Wright being intimate?"

Giselle sighed, "That rumor has been around for a week now. The gossip has only gotten worse."

"What?" Isabella frowned, looking helplessly at Giselle.

"You've been gone for so long, and the company is split into two camps about your absence. One camp says Mr. Wright is keeping you,so you don't need to work anymore. The other camp says Mr. Wright fired you to appease Ms. Johnson and clear his name. Since you were introduced by Eric,he couldn't openly fire you, so he used his authority to give you a long leave."

"Ms. Johnson?" Isabella was confused.

"That's another story. There's a rumor that Mr. Wright has a crush on Ms.Johnson. Some even say they're together, but Ms. Johnson insists on not getting married," Giselle explained.

"What?" Isabella was stunned, impressed by everyone's imagination.

Giselle reminded her, "You just started here and already have such rumors.Someone is definitely targeting you. Be careful not to get framed."

Isabella gratefully nodded at Giselle and said, "I understand, Giselle.Thank you for telling me this."

Giselle waved her hand dismissively and replied, "It's no big deal. I just think it's pitiful for a newcomer like you to be burdened with such obviously false rumors."

Isabella suddenly thought, 'What if these rumors reached Jeremy's ears?Will he misunderstand and think I have fabricated them?

"Giselle, do you think I should go to Mr. Wright and explain these things?"Isabella asked helplessly.

On one hand, she feared Jeremy's misunderstanding. On the other hand,she was more worried about Michael hearing the rumors and misunderstanding.

Giselle pondered for a moment and said seriously, "Isabella, if it were me,I wouldn't go. First, no matter your intention, dealing with Mr. Wright would give the rumor-mongers new material, solidifying the previous rumors. Secondly, Mr. Wright might not even know about these rumors yet. If you go to him and he fires you to clear his name with Ms. Johnson as the rumors suggest, what will you do?"

Isabella had interacted with Jeremy twice. Other than his somewhat unpredictable personality, he seemed like a good person overall.

She said, "Giselle, I don't think Mr. Wright is unreasonable. He wouldn't fire me without finding out the truth,right?"

Giselle looked around to make sure no one was listening and whispered to Isabella,"As long as it doesn't involve Ms. Johnson, Mr. Wright is a good person. It's an open secret in the company that he likes Ms. Johnson.He's always polite to female employees, but he's ruthless to those with ulterior motives. Your rumor with him will definitely cause Ms. Johnson to misunderstand. Do you think he will be magnanimous about this?"

Hearing Giselle's words, Isabella decided to let things be for now. As long as she hadn't done anything, she wasn't afraid of gossip.

After all, keeping her job was crucial. There was already Michael at home without a job; she couldn't be jobless too.

What Isabella didn't know was that while she decided not to clarify things with Jeremy, someone else approached Jeremy because of her.