At that moment, Harvey realized that he had actually forgotten about that little fact. Back when the painting was done, he had promised to give it to Irene for free.Still, under the impression that she was on his side, he asked, "Shall we speak in private?"After all, Isaac had pushed her off a building, leaving her with a broken foot. Reasonably speaking, she must hate him, and the fact that he was conning so much money from Isaac should please him."We can talk here," Irene said, but she certainly did not protest that Harvey was tricking Isaac for his money. However, she felt as if Harvey was using her, and she should get a cut. She never valued money that much before, but circumstances were different now—she had no income, and she needed a lot of money for Tommy and her mother's living expenses. She must think for their sake.Harvey could see what she was getting at, and simply said right in Isaac's face, "30 percent. How about that?"He had lost too much money becau

"I'm hurting worse than you," Isaac finished.In fact, his heart was broken!Tenderly brushing a finger against the corner of Irene's eye while he was aflame with emotion, he told her, "You're married to me and you're therefore mine. It's our destiny, and you should play the part of a wife too."In the past, he never believed in destiny—but he found belief because of her, and he was convinced that fate tied them together. On the first night of their wedding, they had somehow consummated their marriage even though he was insistent on not meeting her at the mansion. What was that, if not destiny?On the other hand, Irene gulped. She would have been willing to follow her agreement with Henry to uphold her marriage with Isaac—regardless if he loved her or was nice to her. The only thing that stood between that was the fact that she had a son who was not Isaac's.There was no telling what would happen once Isaac found out, what with his breathtaking anger management issues!Th

Naturally, there was no way Isaac would listen.Walking up to Irene's bed, he sat on it and lay down beside her. Irene had to slide away to make enough room for him, or he would be on top of her again."This bed is too small for two," she whispered. Isaac pulled her into his arms, nestling his nose against her neck. "We're married. We would be sleeping together.Irene was speechless, but her whole body had stiffened and she was afraid to move!Isaac was so close that her skin seemed to burn and flush where there was contact. His hot breath was spraying over a sensitive spot just behind her ear, leaving her on edge."Could you let me go?" she asked drily.Isaac growled, "No."With that, he did nothing else, and his breathing was soon rhythmic. Irene was speechless. Did he fall asleep already? But there was no way she could!The bed was too small for her to get away from him, and so she sighed in resignation and started at the ceiling, planning various ways to calm hersel

"It's the amount Mr. Jefferson told us to prepare," Stan said.Harvey was fuming. How did 70 million dollars end up as 21 million dollars?! Isaac was clearly reneging!He stormed off to look for Isaac to argue his case, and Isaac just happened to finish his discussion with Mr. Layton. Mr. Layton flashed an awkward smile when he saw Harvey, and left without even a greeting. Still, he was clearly set on a partnership with Isaac than Harvey anyway. Harvey did not leave him with any harsh remarks, since no agreement was actually signed and calling it off beforehand was not reneging. They were all business people, and making things awkward for one another was unnecessary.And Harvey was a man who could see the bigger picture.After Mr. Layton was out of earshot, he finally spoke, "Are you breaking the deal, Mr. Jefferson?"Isaac simply turned and headed back to his office, so Harvey followed him, snapping relentlessly, "You made the bid yourself! So why are you paying me only 21 mi

Irene was stunned. Surely it was not Isaac? More importantly, did he overhear what Harvey just said?Still, she relaxed as she looked toward the door and saw that it was Mrs. Watson.Naturally, Harvey saw the way she reacted. Was she that afraid of Isaac? Still, her fear made sense—Harvey himself could not beat Isaac at all, and it was only imaginable how much abuse Irene suffered in his hands!While Harvey quietly mused to himself, Mrs. Watson looked at him warily and put the food she brought on the table. "You should be resting, Mrs. Jefferson."Irene could see that Mrs. Watson did not like Harvey, and smiled. "I know."Even after all that had happened, she cared for Mrs. Watson because she had really been nice to her."I'm having lunch now, Harvey, and I'm afraid I don't have anything to spare. You should go."Harvey pursed his lips—why did it feel like he was being shown the door the entire day? Be it maids or Stan, every single employee Isaac had were disgustingly p