Chapter 1166: Chapter 1166: Isabelle, Is Your Brother With You?
At the same time Isabelle Martin hung up the phone, Jeffrey Foster’s earpiece delivered a report from his subordinate, "Sir, the man is causing quite a commotion, he doesn’t seem to be from their side, how would you like to handle it?"
"Keep him detained for now and investigate his background." Jeffrey Foster whispered, avoiding Isabelle.
Seeing her brother’s missed calls, Isabelle mumbled, this guy must have known she was having a date tonight and called to mess with her, she snorted but didn’t return the call.
Hearing her speak, Jeffrey Foster asked in a low voice, "What happened?"
"My brother called twice and sent a weird blank message. I don’t know what’s up with him," Isabelle said casually.
Jeffrey Foster reminded her, "You should call him back and check."
Isabelle thought it was a good idea, but after dialing for a while, there was no answer. She sighed, "That rascal is definitely doing it on purpose to annoy me. I won’t bother."
"Heh." Jeffrey Foster chuckled softly at how she talked about her brother.
Realizing her words, Isabelle felt embarrassed, "Hehe, I don’t usually swear, but my brother can be really annoying sometimes."
"Hmm." Jeffrey Foster, despite having siblings, didn’t quite understand the sibling affection of ordinary families. The Foster family had many children, raising them like raising insects, only the most outstanding and ruthless one would survive, while others would either die young or be defeated and driven to foreign lands.
He was the "chosen one" nurtured by the Foster family, never truly experiencing familial affection.
Isabelle was slightly relieved that Jeffrey wasn’t upset by her words earlier, but still cautiously asked, "You’re not mad about me hiding my identity from you, right? Or would that bother you?"
"If it bothers me, would you stop pursuing me?" Jeffrey countered.
Isabelle quickly shook her head, "How could I? I would never give up."
"Hmm." Jeffrey responded lightly, his mood should have been happy, but the thought of being followed tonight complicated things again.
His grudges with the Foster family ran deep. As long as Hearst Foster was alive, even if imprisoned, he wouldn’t let Jeffrey have an easy life.
Isabelle was puzzled by Jeffrey’s "hmm," not quite understanding what it meant. Her large eyes wandered over him until he said, "Let’s go, didn’t you say we’re running late?"
"Oh right, almost forgot, let’s hurry." With Jeffrey’s reminder, Isabelle pulled him in the direction of the opera house.
Because of Zed Julius’s invitation, many of the property staff went, and many residents received tickets too. When Isabelle led Jeffrey into the theater, she immediately spotted several familiar faces and instantly let go of Jeffrey’s hand.
Jeffrey was momentarily taken aback, unclear about her actions, until Isabelle quietly explained, "I see several colleagues."
"Oh." Jeffrey’s emotion was unclear, but his mood inexplicably worsened. Although he planned to clarify things with Isabelle after tonight to avoid his business dragging her down, being released due to her fear of being seen upset him greatly.
Wasn’t she supposed to like him a lot? Why was she afraid of people seeing them together?
Although not a sensitive person, Isabelle could easily sense Jeffrey’s subtle emotions. She quickly added, "Some people in the company thought I was using my relationship with you to seek personal gain when I suggested making pathways for the blind in the neighborhood. I’m afraid they’ll gossip if they see us together."
"Are you?" Jeffrey suddenly asked.
Isabelle was stunned, then guiltily stuck out her tongue, "Not entirely, there are other visually impaired people and elderly with poor eyesight in the neighborhood. The pathways could help them."
"Hmm, so are you planning to sneak around from now on?" Jeffrey asked seriously.
Isabelle shook her head vigorously but quickly realized Jeffrey couldn’t see, so she hastily explained, "No way, if we were together, I’d want to tell the whole world!"
"You fool." Jeffrey suddenly felt it was a shame for the girl. Her heart was full of him, but he was thinking about how to distance himself from her.
"I’m smart, not a fool." Isabelle proudly denied it, feeling smug that she almost had Mr. Foster; how could she be called foolish?
She was the cleverest in the world.
"Hmm, not a fool." Jeffrey softly agreed with Isabelle, then allowed her to lead him past her colleagues from the property and into the theater.
They had barely sat down when Isabelle received a message from Zed Julius. After thinking for a moment, she replied with a message, then turned to the man beside her, "What do you think?"
When Isabelle invited Jeffrey, she didn’t consider much, but after sitting down, she realized that although it was an opera, it still required vision to enjoy. Unsure if Jeffrey would be disappointed, she worried.
"I’m fine, no need to worry." Blessing him with an understanding heart, Jeffrey could immediately tell what Isabelle was concerned about.
Isabelle relaxed a little, but her focus was entirely not on the opera. Her gaze frequently landed on Jeffrey, only to find him more focused than she was, looking as if he came to appreciate the opera genuinely. Gradually, Isabelle grew bolder, and her eyes started sticking to Jeffrey.
As for when Zed Julius appeared or left the stage, she completely missed it.
Nor did she notice a colleague not far away pointing a phone at her and Jeffrey.
Midway through the opera, Jeffrey finally couldn’t help but turn his head toward the girl, "Are you sure you want to stare at me all night?"
"Cough, cough..." Isabelle awkwardly coughed, thinking this man couldn’t see, yet remained so perceptive? She was unaware of how intense her gaze was.
Jeffrey shook his head silently as Isabelle’s phone vibrated again, and he gestured for her to check it.
Unwilling to be interrupted, Isabelle picked up the phone and noticed her mother’s number. Curious, she answered, and in a lowered voice said, "Mom?" Only to hear her mother’s frantic voice, "Isabelle, is your brother with you?"
"Huh? No, I’m not with Kent. Wasn’t he with you and me?" Holding her hand over the phone, Isabelle apologetically glanced around, growing more puzzled. Usually, her brother wasn’t home at this time, but her mother wasn’t this anxious.
"I just saw your brother’s missed calls and an SOS. His phone is off when I call. What’s going on? I told him to follow you tonight." Mrs. Martin asked anxiously.
Isabelle froze, then recalled the two missed calls and the blank message from her brother. She suddenly stood up, realizing her brother was in trouble and had been asking for her help!
"What happened?" Jeffrey sensed Isabelle’s change in mood after receiving the call, urgently asking.
Isabelle’s eyes reddened, "Mr. Foster, something happened to my brother!"
......
Refreshed a little later.
Chapter 1166
As Isabelle Martin hung up the phone, Jeffrey Foster’s headset came alive with a report from his subordinate, "Sir, the man is causing quite a commotion; it doesn’t seem like he’s from over there. What do you want us to do with him?"
"Keep him locked up for now and check his background," Jeffrey Foster instructed quietly, avoiding Isabelle’s gaze.
Noticing a missed call from her brother, Isabelle mumbled to herself, knowing he was probably trying to cause trouble since he knew about her date tonight, so she huffed and didn’t call back.
Hearing her talk, Jeffrey Foster asked softly, "What’s going on?"
"My brother called twice and sent a random empty message; I don’t know what he’s up to," Isabelle said, not thinking much of it.
Jeffrey, however, reminded her, "You should call him back and ask."
Isabelle thought it wouldn’t hurt, but after dialing the number for a while without an answer, she sighed, "That little punk is definitely trying to harass me; don’t worry about it."
"Heh." Jeffrey Foster chuckled lightly upon hearing how she referred to her brother.
Realizing what she said, Isabelle’s face flushed with embarrassment, "Hehe, I don’t usually swear, but sometimes my brother really frustrates me."
"Mm." Jeffrey Foster, despite having siblings himself, didn’t quite understand the typical sibling bond. In the Foster family, with so many children, raising them was like raising a legion – only the most outstanding and ruthless would survive; the rest would either die young or be exiled after losing the battle.
He was the one the Foster family cultivated as their champion; familial affection was something he had never truly felt.
Seeing Jeffrey Foster unbothered by her earlier words, Isabelle breathed a small sigh of relief. Remembering her recent revelation of identity, she cautiously asked, "You’re not upset that I hid my identity from you, right? Or do you mind?"
"If I did, would you stop pursuing me?" Jeffrey countered.
Isabelle hurriedly shook her head, "Of course not! I wouldn’t give up."
"Mm." Jeffrey Foster acknowledged with a soft grunt, his mood should have been happy, yet the thought of being followed tonight added complexity to his emotions.
His resentment towards the Foster family ran deep; as long as Hearst Foster was alive, even if locked up, he wouldn’t let him have peace.
Isabelle wasn’t quite sure what Jeffrey meant by his grunt, her large eyes fluttering over him, until he spoke, "Let’s go, weren’t you saying we’re running out of time?"
"Yeah, almost forgot, let’s hurry." With Jeffrey’s reminder, Isabelle pulled him along towards the direction of the opera house.
Thanks to Zed Julius’s invitation, many of the property staff were attending, and quite a few residents had received tickets as well. Isabelle had barely stepped into the theater, sweeping her gaze across, she spotted several familiar faces and immediately let go of Jeffrey’s hand.
Jeffrey paused, slightly confused, as Isabelle whispered an explanation, "I saw several colleagues."
"Oh." Jeffrey acknowledged without revealing his feelings, though internally his mood soured inexplicably. He had intended to clarify things with Isabelle tonight to prevent her from getting involved in his affairs, yet her letting go because she feared being seen left him very displeased.
Wasn’t she supposed to be head over heels for him? Why was she afraid of others seeing them together?
Isabelle wasn’t a receptive person, but she easily caught on to Jeffrey’s subtle emotions. Seeing him upset by her words, she hurried to add, "Recently, I suggested the company build braille paths for the blind in the community, and some from the company thought I was using public office for personal gain because of my relationship with you. I’m afraid they’ll start gossiping if they see us."
"Well, are you?" Jeffrey unexpectedly asked.
Isabelle was stunned, then with a guilty conscience stuck out her tongue, "Not entirely, there are other blind people in the community, and some elderly with poor eyesight too. The braille paths would help them as well."
"Mm, so do you plan to keep this affair secret in the future?" Jeffrey asked matter-of-factly.
Isabelle shook her head vigorously like a rattle drum but realized Jeffrey couldn’t see, so she quickly chimed in to explain, "Of course not! If we were together, I’d want to declare it to the world!"
"Stupid." Jeffrey suddenly found himself feeling it was unfair for the girl; her heart was all for him, but he was contemplating how to distance himself from her.
"I’m smart, not stupid," Isabelle denied proudly, feeling smug as she thought she was close to winning over Mr. Foster. How could anyone call her stupid?
She considered herself the brightest in the world.
"Mm, not stupid." Jeffrey Foster lowly affirmed as he allowed Isabelle to lead him away from her colleagues and into the theater.
Soon after they sat, Isabelle received a message from Zed Julius. After a moment of thought, she responded, then turned to the man beside her, "What do you think?"
When Isabelle invited Jeffrey Foster, she didn’t think much of it, but after sitting down, she realized that while it was an opera, it was something that required sight. She didn’t know if his inability to see would upset him.
"I’m fine; don’t worry." With an understanding heart, Jeffrey Foster immediately knew what Isabelle was concerned about as soon as she spoke.
Isabelle relaxed slightly, but unfortunately, her focus wasn’t on the opera. Her gaze frequently fell on Jeffrey, seeing the man’s focused demeanor, making him seem more like the one here for the opera than she was. Gradually, Isabelle became more daring, her eyes eventually glued to Jeffrey’s figure.
As for when Zed Julius appeared and exited the stage, she didn’t notice at all.
Nor did she notice a nearby colleague pointing a phone in her and Jeffrey’s direction.
About halfway through the opera, Jeffrey couldn’t hold back anymore and turned his face towards the girl, "Are you planning to watch me like this all night?"
"Ahem..." Isabelle awkwardly coughed, thinking how could this man be so perceptive even without sight? But she didn’t realize how intense her gaze was.
Jeffrey silently shook his head, just as Isabelle’s phone vibrated again. He gestured for her to check it.
Reluctantly being interrupted, Isabelle picked up the phone; seeing her mother’s number, she curiously answered it. Barely lowering her voice to say, "Mom," she heard her mother’s urgent tone, "Isabelle, is your brother with you?"
"Huh? No, I’m not with Kent. You told me he would be with you, right?" Isabelle covered the mouthpiece apologetically glancing around, growing more puzzled, as her brother rarely wasn’t home by this time without their mother being so anxious.
Isabelle froze, then thought of the two missed calls she hadn’t returned, and the blank message her brother sent. Suddenly panicking, she realized her brother was in trouble—he had been calling for her help!
"I just saw the missed calls from your brother and an SOS message. When I called back, his phone was off. What on earth is going on? Didn’t I tell him to stay with you tonight?" Mrs. Martin asked anxiously.
Isabelle froze, then thought of the two missed calls she hadn’t returned and the blank message her brother sent. Suddenly panicking, she realized her brother was in trouble—he had been calling for her help!
"What’s wrong?" Jeffrey Foster, right beside Isabelle, heard her answer the phone and noticed her sudden shift in emotion, quickly asking.
Isabelle’s eyes were already red, "Mr. Foster, my brother is in trouble!"