Chapter 349

"Yo, what's up?" Quentin cut in, snapping Isabella out of her thoughts.

Isabella looked away. "Oh, nothing. Just feels like it really likes you."

Quentin squatted down, freed a hand, grabbed a cat treat from his pocket, and fed it to Cheese. He gently petted its fur and said, "Probably 'cause I saved its life."

Isabella nodded. Made sense. Cheese was in rough shape back then, and Quentin had come to the rescue. Cats are smart like that, so no wonder Cheese trusted him.

"Quentin!" Elodie hollered as she came downstairs, spotting Quentin and Isabella chatting.

Quentin just glanced up at her, not saying a word.

Elodie shot a look at Isabella. "Who let you in here? Get out! We don't want you here!"

"Elodie!" Quentin barked, his voice stern. "Don't talk to Bella like that!"

"Bella, Bella, Bella! I think you're all under her spell!" Elodie fumed.

Quentin's face darkened. "Keep that up, and you can stop coming over!"

"Quentin!" Elodie whined, trying to be cute.

But Quentin's face stayed stone-cold.

A bit scared of Quentin, Elodie backed down but didn't apologize to Isabella. She stomped her foot and plopped onto the couch, sulking.

Quentin handed the tea set to Isabella. "Bella, head upstairs and chat with Mom."

Isabella got the hint that Quentin wanted to deal with Elodie alone.

She took the tea set. "Alright."

Giving them space, Isabella carried the tea set upstairs.

As soon as Isabella was out of sight, Quentin turned to Elodie.

"Get up!" Quentin demanded, his face stern.

Elodie looked up, seeing Quentin's icy stare, and felt uneasy. She stood up, her earlier bravado gone. "Quentin, are you gonna scold me like Mom, all for some outsider?"

Quentin's face was unreadable. "Mom should've told you, Bella's not an outsider. She's your sister."

Elodie bit her lip, snapping back, "I only have one sister, and she's lying in a hospital bed, hooked up to an oxygen tube. She's practically a living dead, and you and Mom have given up on her!"

Quentin's frown deepened. "Elodie, I'm warning you, be nice to Isabella!"

"Why?" Elodie was baffled.

Quentin glanced upstairs, lowering his voice. "You don't need to get it. Just know that Isabella is your sister. Whether you like it or not, that's a fact. And soon, she'll be part of the Black Family. Bruno's on board with this. Throwing a fit won't change anything!"

Elodie was stunned. "Dad knows about this too?"

Quentin didn't answer and walked away.

Elodie felt it was absurd! No way! She couldn't accept Isabella as her sister! And she definitely couldn't let Isabella join the Black Family!

Elodie clenched her fists, a wicked idea forming in her mind.

Dinner was cooked by Quentin, with Elodie helping out.

Sebastian showed up right after work, carrying Sweetie.

Esme seemed super happy, constantly piling food onto Isabella's plate, though Isabella didn't eat much.

Isabella served Esme a bowl of soup. "Aunt Esme, you should eat too. Don't just serve me."

Seeing Isabella and Esme getting along so well, Quentin looked pretty pleased, while Elodie just sat there with a sour face, staying quiet.

Catching the good vibes, Sebastian pulled something out of his pocket.

Isabella squinted and was a bit shocked. "Wait, isn't that..."

It was the bracelet Isabella had tossed earlier. The one Esme had given her.

Back then, Isabella was so mad she chucked it out the car window.

But Sebastian had picked it up, got it fixed, and now it looked brand new.

Sebastian said, "I saw you went back to look for it twice, so I knew you couldn't really let it go. Honestly, from the moment you threw it away, I knew you'd regret it, so I had Jack go back and find it. It got run over by a car and took days to repair. Some details might be different. Aunt Esme, check it out. If anything's off, we can get it fixed again."

Sebastian's tone was both polite and respectful. By bringing out the bracelet now, he was not only patching things up between Esme and Isabella but also showing Esme that he had Isabella's back, no matter what!

Esme took the bracelet and looked it over, her smile full of satisfaction. "This bracelet was my design, and the draft was never shared. So it's normal the patterns aren't exactly the same. The repair work is top-notch. Who did this?"

Sebastian glanced at Isabella. "A craftsman from Nina and Isabella Jewelry. Nina drew the repair draft and oversaw the whole process."

Isabella's eyelashes fluttered. She thought, 'No one in this world treats me better than Nina.'

Esme was also impressed. "I didn't expect Nina to have such a knack for jewelry design. She's got real potential!"

Elodie, listening on the side, rolled her eyes and almost lost her cool.

Sebastian said, "If everything's good, Aunt Esme, could you help Bella put it back on?"

"Of course. It's my pleasure." Esme's eyes welled up as she helped Isabella put the bracelet back on.

Quentin watched, his eyes flickering slightly. "Mom, don't you have another gift for Bella?"

"Yes." Esme took a document from Quentin. "Bella, sign this. It's my gift to you."

Isabella opened it and saw a few words: [Share Transfer Agreement!]

Isabella asked, "What's this?"

Esme said, "These are the Landon Group shares I bought from Nathaniel. Remember, Bella? When we met at Blue Horizon Cafe, I said this was my gift to my daughter."

But back then, Esme didn't have the guts to tell Isabella she was her daughter. Now the time was right, and she had to give what she should.

Isabella waved her hand. "I can't accept this."

Esme put the pen in her hand. "Bella, all I can give you are these material things. I hope they give you enough confidence. You have to accept them."

Quentin chimed in, "Take it, Bella. It's a token of Mom's love."

Elodie glared but kept her mouth shut.

Isabella finally signed the transfer agreement.

Quentin watched her sign, a subtle emotion flickering in his dark eyes.