Chapter 125
Felix turned to look at her. "Regarding what happened this time, what do you plan to do?"
Gianna fell silent for a few seconds before slowly saying, "Just like last time, pretend nothing happened."
At her words, a coldness flickered in Felix's eyes as he stared at her intently. "Gianna, I'm a businessman. I never engage in losing deals; and I've helped you both times."
"What do you want?"
Seeing the caution in Gianna's eyes, Felix spoke indifferently, "Don't worry. I won't ask you to take responsibility, but I feel we are compatible and would like to maintain this relationship long-term."
A hint of surprise flashed in Gianna's eyes as she frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Just physical intimacy, no emotional attachment. How about it?"
As soon as Felix finished speaking, Gianna coldly replied, "I'm sorry. I refuse."
“Why?”
Thinking of the messages Bella had sent her earlier, Gianna chuckled coldly.
"Mr. Clinton, if you have needs, Bella would be more than happy to oblige."
Felix's eyes turned cold, and he looked at Gianna with a frosty expression.
"I'm not interested in anyone else; and we've been happy together, haven't we?"
Gianna remained silent for a moment, furrowing her brow. "We're already divorced. Shouldn't you be preparing to marry Bella next?"
"I won't marry her, nor will I be with her."
Despite such assurances, Gianna's brow furrowed even tighter.
"Let me think about it."
Honestly, Felix was skilled in love, and being intimate with him didn't leave Gianna feeling shortchanged.
If it were someone else, she might have agreed by now, but their past marriage made her reluctant to get entangled with him again.
Seemingly sensing Gianna's concerns, Felix spoke calmly, "Don't worry, I won't use it to push for remarriage. If you find someone else you like, or if I want to be with someone else, we can end this relationship at any time. I won't ask anything of you in normal circumstances."
"Are you really not going to be with Bella?"
Felix furrowed his brow and said coldly, "I've already said that we haven't been together since she returned to her country."
Gianna didn't press further and nodded, saying, "Okay, I can agree; on the condition that in the future, I can interact with other men; and you can't interfere."
Even though the two are now divorced, if Felix really wanted to entangle her, it would be troublesome for Gianna. She thought he won't force her if she didn't plan to have sex with him in the future.
Felix's gaze deepened slightly. "Alright."
After reaching an agreement, Gianna stood up and said, "I have something to do, so I'll leave first."
"Go ahead."
Gianna took her phone and left.
As Gianna walked out of the lounge, she saw several missed calls on her phone, all from staff members of the design competition.
Gianna called back, and as soon as the call connected, an anxious voice came through.
"Miss Elia, where are you?! Everyone online is discussing your sudden disappearance! When are you coming back?"
A hint of confusion flashed in Gianna's eyes as she replied, "I'll be back soon."
After hanging up the phone, Gianna opened Facebook; and the top trending topic was #EliaMissing#. She clicked on it and realized that people were discussing her sudden disappearance while evaluating design drafts.
Gianna exited Facebook, quickly returned to the judging room. She apologized to the staff members, and went back to her room to continue reviewing the design drafts.
On the other side, in Felix's lounge, after Gianna left, he sat on the sofa, picked up the glass of wine on the table, and took a sip, his eyes deep with thought.
Suddenly, the phone beside him rang.
"Felix, all traces have been cleaned up."
"Good. Bring Bella to see me."
After completing her design and leaving the competition venue, Sophia approached Bella, saying, "Miss Redstone, Felix wants to see you."
"Felix is here today?!" Bella's eyes showed surprise and disbelief.
It seemed that Felix, despite his cold demeanor, still cared for her. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come to see her competition.
Suppressing her excitement, Bella made her way to the lounge and upon seeing Felix, she couldn't help but happily say, "Felix, my design score today was very high. I'm sure to advance to the next round!"
Felix didn't respond to her words, his expression cold as he gestured for Sophia to leave.
At that moment, Bella also noticed something off about Felix, and the smile on her face gradually faded.
"Felix, what's the matter?"
With only the two of them left in the private room, Felix looked at her and said, "Sit."
As Bella sat down across from him, Felix picked up the glass in front of him. "I haven't had the chance to congratulate you on passing the preliminary round."
Upon hearing it, Bella quickly picked up another glass of wine, her smile somewhat shy.
"Thank you, Felix."
Felix looked at her coldly as she emptied the glass, his face devoid of warmth.
"By the way, Felix, did you come today specifically to watch my competition?"
Felix swirled the red wine in his glass, his voice indifferent. "No."
Bella's face paled slightly. She bit her lip and asked, "Then why are you here?"
"I came to see Gianna."
"Why?!" Bella stood up suddenly, looking angrily at Felix. "What am I lacking compared to her?! Why have you been so cold to me since I returned to the country?! Felix, are you still mad at me?!"
Felix raised an eyebrow, coldly stating, "It seems I was too kind to you before, which led you to this misconception."
"What do you mean?"
Bella's eyes were filled with disbelief and confusion, looking at Felix with a hurt expression.
Suddenly, she felt something was off with her body.
"What have you done to me?!"
Felix's eyes lowered, his face as cold as ancient ice, just looking at him sent a chill down one's spine.
"Just like what you did to Gianna."
Her eyes widened as she slumped weakly onto the couch.
"Felix, what are you talking about? Why can't I understand?"
Felix stood up indifferently. "You'll understand soon."
As he moved to leave, Bella quickly grabbed his sleeve.
"No! Felix, you can't treat me like this!"
Felix brushed off her hand, speaking slowly and deliberately, "Bella, I gave you a chance. If you've done wrong, you must have the courage to face the consequences."
Just then, Sophia entered with a man.
Seeing him, Bella seemed to grasp something, trembling as she stepped back.
"No! I won't! The Redstone family won't let you get away with this! And have you forgotten what you promised me before?"
"I'll keep my promise to you, but what you owe Gianna must also be repaid!"
With a look of despair from Bella, Felix left with Sophia.
Just as they exited, a loud noise was heard from behind, followed by screams.
"Someone jumped off!"
Sophia glanced back, her expression changing. "Felix, it's Miss Redstone!"
Without looking back, Felix coldly said, "Call an ambulance for her."
On the way back to the office, Sophia was still shaken. She hadn't expected Felix to be so kind to Bella one moment and utterly ruthless the next. Even if Bella had died in front of him, he probably wouldn't have flinched.
Yet Felix could have stopped Bella from drugging Gianna, but he chose to watch events unfold before finally intervening to help Gianna.
'If Gianna knew the truth, she would likely be furious.' She thought.
After Bella was taken to the hospital, Lauren and Julian arrived quickly.
Seeing Bella in a cast on her foot, Lauren's eyes were filled with worry and pity. "Belle, what happened?! How did you suddenly jump from upstairs?!"
The news of Bella's fall had terrified Lauren.
Luckily, it was only from the second floor; and apart from a broken left leg, she wasn't seriously injured elsewhere.
Bella looked aggrieved, crying, "Mom, it was Gianna who caused this!"
