Chapter 10

Isabella's POV

His voice was low and gentle, like a pair of invisible hands that softly caught my endlessly falling heart.

I lifted myself from the crook of Lucas's neck and turned to throw myself into Adrian's embrace.

He smiled and stroked my head. "It seems that when it comes to comforting people, I'm only qualified to be Lucas's backup option."

I couldn't help but laugh softly into his chest, and miraculously, most of that heavy, oppressive gloom weighing on my heart dissipated.

"Please don't take it personally, Adrian. I'm not crying over that shameless bastard. I'm just so angry I can't hold back my tears... How can there be such a shameless person in this world? I really wish everyone with a sense of justice could see what kind of scum he is!"

Taking Lucas by the hand, Adrian picked up my suitcase with his other hand and walked out of the cramped apartment building ahead of me.

He left me a moment to say goodbye to Juliet.

"By the way, Juliet, I've already messaged the landlord. If he thinks my moving out early is a breach of contract, then I guess I'll just have to forfeit my security deposit from the previous five weeks. Adrian wants me to move in with him, and his apartment is indeed much closer to my hospital."

Juliet's eyes were full of genuine joy. "Don't worry, Isabella, I'll help you sort out the housing situation. But speaking of which, it really is quite magical. I always thought you doctors were so busy you barely had time to sleep, let alone date. I never expected I'd get to meet both your ex-boyfriend and your current boyfriend in the same day—how fascinating!"

Just then, the door to another bedroom opened. Hannah emerged wearing an oversized men's T-shirt, the hem just covering her shapely backside.

Her new boyfriend was shuffling toward the bathroom in my old slippers.

Good thing I'd already decided not to take those slippers with me when I was packing.

Juliet and I had never liked Hannah's flippant ways, but since I was leaving now, all I could do was give Juliet a sympathetic look and pray that the next roommate who replaced me wouldn't be even worse than Hannah.

"Hey, Isabella, you're leaving already?"

Clearly she'd heard the commotion outside and deliberately came out to say something uncomfortable. "How worried are you about not being able to hold onto your man that you're sneaking around even when moving? But don't worry, I'm not interested in just any man. Medical students like you probably all have some kind of daddy complex with professors in their fifties, right?"

I was about to retort when Adrian happened to return at that very moment.

He'd helped me carry one suitcase downstairs and had now come back up to help me move the remaining boxes.

When his tall, upright figure appeared in the entryway, the spite in Hannah's eyes instantly transformed into undisguised shock and amazement.

I'll admit, Adrian possessed a face that could make even angels turn their heads.

His features were so deeply sculpted they seemed like the masterwork of the most accomplished Renaissance sculptor who had poured his life's devotion into creating them, with brow bones and nose bridge forming lines both cold and sharp, radiating an innate aristocratic nobility.

Compared to that guy in pink slippers earlier whose abs looked like they'd been injected with some kind of black-market enhancement, Adrian was like a knight descended from the clouds, trampling the other man thoroughly into the mud.

Hannah immediately dropped her previous attitude and practically wagged her way over to him. "Hi, I'm Hannah, Isabella's roommate."

"Former roommate," Juliet said icily. "Isabella is moving out."

The smile on Hannah's face froze for a moment before she awkwardly explained, "What does that matter? Even if we don't live together anymore, we can still be good girlfriends who go shopping and eat together."

Then she turned to look at Adrian, her eyelashes fluttering as if with each blink she wanted to stamp mascara onto her lower lids.

"Hey handsome, you're the first man Isabella's ever brought home, you know. She's the type who likes to hide all her good stuff. Every time she sneaks people into the hospital break room to have sex—"

"Shut up, Hannah!"

Her complete lack of boundaries in invading privacy, even fabricating lies, was simply unbearable.

"How well do you even know me? You've only been here for half a month, and I don't even know your last name. Or do you think the way to build rapport with roommates is to wear their slippers without even asking?"

Juliet leaned against the wall with the air of someone enjoying a show. "Isabella, you got off lucky. Her ex-ex-ex-boyfriend even stole and wore her underwear."

"Shut up, Juliet! I've already broken up with him."

Hannah's face flushed red.

"Was it because he stretched out your underwire and refused to buy you a new one?"

Juliet covered her mouth as she laughed.

I couldn't quite hold back either, but in front of Adrian, I tried my best to maintain composure and dignity.

"All right, you've said goodbye to your roommates. It's getting late."

Adrian didn't give Hannah any more opportunities to perform.

He simply stepped forward and naturally took my hand, generously displaying the vintage-cut diamond ring on my ring finger right in front of her.

"Just to clarify," his voice was low and utterly commanding, "I won't be her boyfriend for much longer. I'm about to become her husband. Of course, if my future wife wishes to invite her friends over to our home, I would certainly welcome them."

Sitting in the car, watching the scenery retreat past the window, I took a deep breath and turned to him somewhat guiltily. "I'm sorry, Adrian. Actually, I'm not that close with those two roommates. Juliet is okay, but I barely have any relationship with Hannah. Please don't take what they said to heart."

I'd only just graduated and started working recently, and I'd rented the place three months ago. Juliet and Hannah had already been living there, but because I was usually so busy at the hospital, I hadn't had much interaction or time with them.

"No need to apologize for others. I don't care. Besides, she was only showing interest in me—she didn't actually offend me."

"Oh please, a woman like Hannah would mate with any species of primate with body hair."

I pursed my lips and looked out the window, feeling inexplicably uncomfortable.

The reputation of a playboy wasn't undeserved—what man didn't want to be pursued by beautiful women?

When Adrian stopped at a red light, he reached over and grasped my hand.

I hesitated for a moment, then gently pulled away.

"Adrian, I think... shouldn't we sign some kind of agreement between us?"

I figured that if we'd agreed from the start that marriage and children were only for the Hawthorne family trust fund, then perhaps I shouldn't interfere with Adrian's romantic life.

And correspondingly, he shouldn't interfere with mine either.

In other words, behind this contractual marriage, we should be able to maintain a highly open autonomy over our emotional lives.