Alexander sat at the window seat on the fifth floor cafe of the Four seasons hotel. Beside him, his assistant kicked his leg under the table for the eighth time. Then, with an apologetic expression, he smiled at the two people sitting opposite them and said, "Sorry, just a moment."

It seemed like the two of them wouldn't sit still for any longer, but they remained calm, forcing a smile back at him.

Then, the entire table fell silent again for a long time. As time slowly went by, Alexander's assistant was a little uncomfortable in his seat, and became a little anxious.

A proposal was put in front of Alexander. They wasted two whole hours of the partners' time. Even with the reminder, Alexander still had no reaction, just staring blankly at the contract.

After half an hour passed, the assistant kicked Alexander again. The man still stared unwavering at the contract without any reaction at all, treating everything around him like air.

The two partners before him had clearly grown restless.

Seeing as Alexander hadn't said a word, the assistant coughed heavily. In the end, all he could do was smile at the two partners. "I'm so sorry. How about this... We'll take this proposal back with us to have a good look. When we reach a decision, I'll contact you both. What do you think?"

The two of them looked at each other, and one of them nodded their head, saying "All right."

The assistant then hurriedly got up, politely seeing both of the partners out. When he came back, Alexander eyes had already pulled away from the proposal and he looked out the window with an intense expression.

In the past half a month, this was the fifth time he met partners to discuss a possible cooperation. In the end, after they met, Mr. Smith would keep his silence. No matter what the other person said, or how someone prompted him, he didn't react at all.

To be more exact, ever since Isabelle and Mr. Smith had broken all ties, Mr. Smith had become silent. Before, Mr. Smith didn't speak much either, but now it was so to a frightening degree. Often during business meetings, he wouldn't utter a word throughout. When he did speak, it would be two simple words, "Let's begin", or "Meeting adjourned".

Mr. Smith had always been antisocial, but now, he was even more antisocial than before. Sometimes, he would attend mandatory events, but whenever he went, he would always find a quiet corner alone.

Isabelle's split with him seemed like it had little effect on him. His temper was normal, emotions were normal, but, he was very clearly even more distant and difficult to get close to.

Quite a few people at the company also noticed him acting strange. Some said that Mr. Smith had become even colder, others said that Mr. Smith was even more condescending, but only he knew that he'd lost someone who he could talk to, so he didn't want to talk at all.

The assistant shook his head, walked forward, and looked at the same page and words in the proposal that had left Alexander in a trance. In the end, his eyes landed on the word "Belle". If that was the case... It was something that appeared often, a most ordinary word, and yet, because the word was in that woman's name, every time he saw it, he would end up like that...

The assistant gently sighed in relief, put the proposal away, and then said in low voice, "Mr. Smith, it's getting late, shall we leave?"

Alexander stayed quiet for some time, but in the end, he nodded without a word. He then stood up, and the assistant hurriedly called the service staff for the bill. He followed Alexander out.

After he got in the car, Alexander still didn't say a word. He sat there in the back on his own and pulled out his phone. Who knew what he saw, but he stared dazed for a long time. He abruptly raised his head and said in a cold, flat voice, "To York Garden."

After Isabelle moved out of York Garden, Alexander had never went back to there, Madam Mary was originally hired for Isabelle. Now, she had already been given a big sum of money to leave.

The assistant was in a daze for a moment. He didn't say a word, but followed Alexander's orders and changed the route in the navigation.Alexander leaned back into his car seat with his eyes shut. His phone screen lit up with the post Isabelle has just uploaded.

He didn't ask his assistant to drive in, but to stop at the entrance of York Garden's neighborhood. He got out of the car, alone, and walked in.

The gates of the mansion were locked. He searched his pocket for ages before he pulled out a set of keys. They were the keys Isabelle had left him in the car on the day she left. He still clearly remembered when he gave her the keys, when they weren't that close. He had tried hard to appear distant, afraid that he would reveal the excitement he felt inside.

He unlocked it and pushed open the steel doors, stepping in. Without Madam Mary, the courtyard hadn't been swept for half a month already. The day Isabelle left, the entire courtyard was filled with blooming flowers, but now, they were all withered on the floor.

Alexander stood on the fallen flowers at the entrance of the mansion. He entered the passcode, pushed the door open, and walked in.

The mansion was empty inside, just like his heart. He walked up the stairs, towards the bedroom. It was the same as the day Isabelle left. The windows were shut. A few days ago, there was a storm, which left strokes of mud marks from the rain.

The silent room stifled Alexander's heart. He looked at the bag on the floor of the changing room, and thought of what Isabelle had said to him before she left: Inside, there were clothes that she didn't want.

Alexander paused for a moment, then walked over. He opened the bag and pulled out each item of clothing. He took the coat hangers from his clothes and hung her's up.

In the bag, there were also Isabelle's cleaning products. He put them under the shower and washed them. Then, he placed them back in their original places.

Once he had tidied up everything, Alexander's heart felt the slightest bit better. By putting the things she didn't want back in their places, it felt like she was still living with him in the mansion.

~*~

After James was discharged, he was stuck in the Williams family estate for the entire half a month without going outside. He wasn't even allowed to take a walk in the courtyard, as the housekeeper or Mrs. Williams would make a huge fuss and order the servants to follow behind him, afraid he would get into an accident.

Though he was clearly living an enviable life of luxury, James felt like it was a prison. He felt incredibly oppressed. One day, he finally snapped and sneaked out of the house when Mrs. Williams was at the company and the housekeeper was cooking.

Before sneaking out the front door, James had called for a taxi in advance. Once he got in the car, he tried to call his close friends to come out with him.

As James couldn't drink, he thought about it again. In the end, he decided to hold the party at York Garden, where he promised everyone to cook a lavish dinner.

Before he went to York Garden, James personally took a trip to the supermarket and bought a bunch of ingredients. He casually left the address and sent the food off for delivery.

The Williams family would send someone over to York Garden to clean the mansion. Within two minutes of James's arrival, Sophia and Jake had already come over. James called them over to sit anywhere. Before he could even pour them two cups of water, the doorbell rang. It was the supermarket food delivery.

James pointed at the water dispenser as a signal for Sophia to help herself. He then pulled the door open, standing there to check his order with the delivery men. That was when he saw Alexander standing on the balcony of the mansion next door.

James paused for a moment and turned his head towards the delivery man to continue listening to him rattle on. "A pound of celery, a bag of star anise, soy sauce, vinegar, a bag of salt, two pounds of chili...

"Sir, this is everything you've ordered," the delivery man said as he handed James the list. "Could you please sign here?"

James took the pen and signed. After the delivery man left, he stood at the door for half a minute before ignoring the boxes next to him and striding over to the mansion next door.

He pressed the doorbell with the other hand in his pocket. After waiting for a while, the door opened, and James smiled, calling out, "Bro."

When Alexander heard the doorbell, he wondered who it could be. As he opened the door, he saw James's beaming smile. He slightly paused, then gently nodded at him.

James was long used to Alexander's personality, and so didn't mind it. He continued to smile and said, "Bro, I invited some of my friends to dinner tonight. Do you want to join?"

Alexander looked over at James's mansion and thought back to Isabelle, who he'd seen dragging her suitcase into the house next door when he drew the curtains in the morning. After a while, his lips squirmed, and he replied with only one word, "All right."

~*~

Even though Isabelle and James said they would divorce, for now, they were still married in name. After moving out of Alexander's mansion, she definitely couldn't live back with the Davis family, nor was she willing to move into the Williams family's estate because she would then have to share a room with James. Once she thought about it for a while, she decided to move back into York Garden. However, this time, not in Alexander's mansion, but James's mansion.

But because she was in a hurry to film the commercial abroad, she had only put her suitcase in James's mansion. Then she hastily rushed off to catch her trip.

The flight from Paris completely exhausted her out, so when she reached this morning, she went straight to York Garden to catch up on some sleep.

When she woke up that afternoon, she heard the faint sounds of talking coming from downstairs. At first, she thought it was a dream. She turned around, shut her eyes, and continued to sleep, then she realized that the rowdiness became clearer. So she climbed out of bed and ran out of the room and down the stairs in her pajamas, where she saw several people in the living room chatting and laughing away.

Isabelle was a little dizzy from the rowdy scene before her. Before she snapped back to reality, she heard Sophia make a fuss about nothing. "Izzy, did you just wake up?"

Isabelle furrowed her brows. "Sis, how come you're all here?"

"James said he'd cook everyone dinner." Sophia pointed at the entrance, where Isabelle then saw James crouched down next to a cardboard, arranging all types of vegetables and fruits.

James had a box of tomatoes in his hand. He turned his head and glanced at Isabelle. "Izzy, you're back from France? How was the commercial?"

"Great..." As Isabelle said that, the doorbell rang. James, who was just about to stand up to open the door, was beaten to the punch by Isabelle, who walked over. "Let me."

She didn't look through the peep hole to see who it was and pulled the door open. When she raised her head, she saw Alexander's breathtakingly handsome face.

Isabelle was abruptly stunned on the spot.

When Alexander saw who opened the door, his pupils clearly widened. As he finally went back to normal, he stared straight at Isabelle. However, it was like his stare had frozen over, giving off a cold feel.

It had only been half a month without seeing each other, but Isabelle felt like it had been as long as a century. His complexion was still outstanding, but his expression looked even colder than before. Between his brows, the heartlessness and remoteness was as thick as the fog.

"Bro, you're here?"

James's words suddenly woke Isabelle up, and she realized that Alexander was staring at her chest. She was wearing a strappy nightdress, which completely revealed her delicate collar bone.

Her face grew hot. She lowered her head and quickly opened the door. Then she said to James in a low voice, "You take care of them, I'll go up and change."

As she said this, Isabelle turned, and ran all the way up the stairs.

Alexander stood at the entrance, without moving an inch until Isabelle disappeared around the corner of the stairs. Then he swept his eyes over to James's cardboard boxes. Besides vegetables, fruit, and other ingredients, there were a few boxes of condoms. In that instant, it was like his whole body was struck by an electric shock, and his body shook.

"Bro, why are you just standing there? Come and sit!" After seeing Alexander standing at the door for so long, James couldn't help but remind him.

It was like Alexander didn't hear James's words, as he stared transfixed at the small colorful square boxes.

James furrowed his brows and called out, "Bro?"

Alexander snapped back to reality in a blink. His hands silently balled up into fists. Practically using all the power in his body, he forced himself to calmly stride over to James's side. As he walked over to the living room full of familiar faces, he responded to their greetings with an absent-minded nod. Then he found a armchair and sat down.

People in the room were happily chatting away and laughing, but Alexander sat aside and never said a word. His eyes stared outside the window, as though he was in a daze, until Isabelle came back down after getting changed. His pupils then hovered over her body.

With Alexander in the living room, Isabelle felt a little uncomfortable. She chit-chatted a little with Sophia and the others, then went into the kitchen to see if she could help James.

She came out twice, once carrying a pot of tea, and once carrying a plate of fruit.

She even poured everyone a cup of tea. As she handed Alexander a cup, he spoke his first words since entering the house, "Thank you."

Isabelle lowered her eyes, and didn't even look at him. She just gently twitched the corner of her lips and walked back into the kitchen.

~*~

Even though James was a young master who lived a life of luxury, he had learned how to cook a table full of dishes during his university years.

Even though Isabelle was in the kitchen, she couldn't really do much to help. At best, she helped peel the garlic and wash a plate, all whilst James repeatedly complained about her being in the way.

In the end, James couldn't take it any longer and turned the fire off. He pushed Isabelle by her shoulders towards the kitchen door. He was about to kick her out when Alexander walked head on into them.

Isabelle and James's footsteps stopped at the same time.

James smiled and he asked, "Bro, what's wrong?"

Alexander's expression ran cold and he looked away when he saw James's hands on Isabelle's shoulders. He handed him the house phone and said in lonely and cold voice, "You've got a call."

James pulled his arms from Isabelle's shoulders and took the phone. He glanced at the caller id, raised his hand, and rubbed his nose. He picked up the call, and cried, "Mum... I'm fine... I was just bored like crazy at home. Izzy is with me..."

James passed Isabelle the phone, shrugged with a helpless expression, and said, "Mum would like to speak with you."

As Isabelle took the phone, James pointed at the soup he was cooking in the kitchen and walked over to it.

Isabelle put the phone to her ear and said, "Auntie."

"Izzy, you're back from France?"

Isabelle gave a gentle "mm", then Mrs. Williams's voice was heard again. "James turned his phone off. I called you, but you didn't pick up."

Isabelle then remembered that her phone was upstairs, and she hurriedly said in a soft voice, "I don't have my phone on me. Is there something you need?"

"Nothing much... just to look after James. He's only just been discharged. Though his condition is good, he's still not very nimble. Don't let him drink alcohol..." Mrs. Williams rambled into the phone, leaving many tasks for Isabelle.

Isabelle patiently responded to every one of them.

Even though Alexander didn't know what Mrs. Williams had really said, but he could take a guess what it was. His heart instantly darkened.

"Don't you worry. I will definitely watch out for James and take good care of him." Isabelle's tone was soft and gentle, as she slowly finished what she had to say. Then she hung up the phone. As she was about to put the phone on the dock, Alexander, who stood nearby, pulled his arm out and said, "Give it to me."

Isabelle raised her eyelids up at Alexander's serene eyes. His beautiful pupils were silently cold and carried no emotions. She hesitated for a moment, then handed the phone to Alexander. "All right, I'll leave it to you."

Alexander didn't make a sound when he took the phone with a calm expression. He calmly turned around and walked back into the living room. His back looked cold and arrogant, but no one knew that his heart was bleeding.

~*~

James's dinner was exceptionally grand. The group sat surrounding the dining table. They hadn't lifted their chopsticks to taste the food yet, but just by looking at the table the dishes were very presentable and smelled wonderful. That's when everyone started to say all sorts of compliments.

"James, are you sure that you got someone to fix your face and not your not cooking skills?"

Long before James had woken up, the Williams family revealed that they had contacted the world's best plastic surgeon to restore James's face, so that the real James could smoothly handover from Alexander's fake "James" facade.

Not to mention, James's face had recovered well. He looked no different from before, and there was no indication that he'd been in a car accident.

"This is truly a full recovery. Before, when you were disfigured, the young master avoided being seen, practically never leaving the house, and never letting anyone come to visit!"

"Come now! Let's raise a glass to our glowing young master. Cheers!"