Chapter 4
After washing the grapes, Madeleine and Sullivan went back to Naomi’s hospital room. The group continued chatting for a bit longer before leaving. As soon as they exited the hospital, Isabel suggested, “Sully, Ms. Emerson, it’s almost time to eat. Let’s have a meal together!”
Naturally, Sullivan wouldn’t decline Isabel’s request. And, as if to prevent Madeleine from making things difficult for Isabel by putting on airs, he even agreed on Madeleine’s behalf.
Once they arrived at the restaurant, the waiter led them to a private room. Sullivan placed the order for the table, but when he was done, Madeleine realized he only ordered Isabel’s favorites.
Perhaps that was the difference love made. She had once requested that he take note of all her likes and dislikes as well. But alas, there was a great disparity between something one was forced to do and something one was willingly doing.
Fortunately, Madeleine had expected as much, so she wasn’t all that disappointed. She merely ate in silence. They were halfway through their food when Sullivan got an urgent call, which he went out to take.
Madeleine froze when she inadvertently spotted the ring Isabel was wearing. “Where did you get that ring from?”
Isabel glanced at the ring on her thumb. Seemingly not noticing anything unusual, she smiled and replied, “From Sully, of course. I said it looked pretty, so he gave it to me right away.”
Madeleine’s expression immediately turned dark. She had carved that ring herself, injuring her hands in the process. Then, she had personally given the ring to Sullivan on their anniversary. There was even a sentence carved on the inside that read, “Madeleine Emerson will love Sullivan Carter forever”.
The ring was a token of her genuine love that she offered up to Sullivan on a silver platter, but he didn’t care for it and even gave it to Isabel without a second thought!
A surge of indescribable rage washed over Madeleine, but at the very next moment, she recalled the plot of the novel.
Isabel had been the one Sullivan loved all along. Was it a surprise that he didn’t care about the gift from Madeleine? He would only detest her further if she made a big deal out of this.
Instantly, she calmed down, composed herself, and even flashed a faint smile as she said, “It’s very pretty. It suits you.”
Isabel had been waiting for Madeleine to have a fit. Thus, her eyes flickered with surprise when Madeleine was able to move on from this situation in such a calm manner. Clenching her jaw, she abruptly stood up and served a bowl of soup to Madeleine.
“You should try more of the food, Ms. Emerson. Here, have some of this lobster bisque. It’s quite good.”
Madeleine was allergic to seafood. She was just about to decline when she noticed that Isabel wasn’t serving the bowl of soup to her at all. Instead, Isabel flicked her wrist, and the bowl went crashing on the ground.
Isabel’s eyes immediately pooled with tears of indignation that threatened to spill over. Before Madeleine could figure out what Isabel was up to, Sullivan flew into the room and shielded Isabel defensively before glaring daggers at Madeleine.
“What did you do, Madeleine?” he questioned.
Still red-eyed, Isabel buried herself in Sullivan’s arms and stoked the flames. “It’s my fault, Sully. She only threw the soup at me because I made her angry. It’s just a burn. I’m fine. Please don’t blame her for what happened…”
Madeleine’s eyes widened at Isabel’s blatant lies, and she protested, “I didn’t do anything!”
She wanted to explain what happened, but Sullivan ignored her. After tossing her one last icy glance, he snarled, “You’re out of line, Madeleine.”
Then, he picked Isabel up and carried her off.
Staring at his retreating back and Isabel’s taunting gaze, Madeleine was rooted to the spot. She felt as if her heart had been plunged into ice.
Meanwhile, it felt like Isabel realized how effective this trick was. As a result, Madeleine was even more dumbfounded to find that over the next few days, Isabel seemed to have gotten addicted to framing her.
Not only did she claim that Madeleine made her lose her job, but she also said that Madeleine forbade all the companies in the industry from hiring her. She even reported that Madeleine had gotten someone to vandalize her house, making it impossible for her to live in peace.
Sullivan couldn’t take it anymore, so he went to the villa and confronted Madeleine, saying, “If you’re unhappy, Madeleine, come at me instead. Why are you making life difficult for Isabel?”
Throughout their five-year relationship, Sullivan had always been curt and cold around Madeleine. It was her first time seeing him in such an emotional state—but it was in defense of Isabel.
“I didn’t do anything to her. It wasn’t me,” Madeleine refuted.
She did her best to explain the truth, but Sullivan didn’t believe her.
“Who else could it be, if not you?” Sullivan snarled. “You’d even pay me to date you! Is there anything you’re not capable of doing? This had better be the last of it. I’ve given you everything you asked for. So, why are you going after the people around me?”
Sullivan was so utterly disappointed that he didn’t want to talk to Madeleine anymore. He marched straight to the guest bedroom.
Madeleine did her best to quell her sadness as she watched him leave. To him, she would never be worthy of his trust.
That being said, apart from feeling sad, she was even more gripped by fear. She was leaving in a few days, but if things carried on like this, Sullivan would kill her before she could fake her death.
Madeleine tossed and turned all night before finally coming up with a solution. That very night, she drove to Isabel’s place. As soon as the door opened, she said, “Let’s call a truce, Isabel. From now on, I’ll set you up with Sullivan.”
