Chapter 46

Sebastian didn't come home all night. Vanessa slept on the couch in the living room, wondering where he was. She picked up her phone and called Jack.

The phone rang a few times before he answered. "Vanessa?"

Vanessa frowned. Jack used to call her that when they worked together at the company. But Jack still wasn't showing her any respect now that she was with Sebastian.

Suppressing her annoyance, Vanessa asked, "Jack, is Mr. Landon with you?"

"Mr. Landon?" Jack paused for a moment but didn't answer her. Instead, he asked, "What's the matter?"

"He didn't come back last night, and I can't reach him on the phone. I'm worried about him. Is he with you discussing business?"

"Mr. Landon isn't with me, but he did have an important project to discuss last night. Maybe he couldn't come back because it was late."

"I see," Vanessa pondered.

"Well, if there's nothing else, I'll hang up," Jack said.

"Wait, Jack, was the oatmeal porridge yesterday good?"

Jack paused for a few seconds before answering, "It was pretty good."

"Really? I was worried I put too much sugar in it. How was the corn?"

"It was good," Jack calmly replied, as if he really had eaten the oatmeal porridge.

"Is that so? That's good." Vanessa's tone softened. "I'm fine now, I'll hang up then."

Vanessa's smile vanished as soon as she hung up the phone. She had not added corn to the oatmeal she had cooked, and her previous excuse for deceiving Jack had now been exposed. How could Jack not realize there was no corn in the porridge if he had eaten it? Clearly, Jack was lying.

The reason Jack lied was even simpler: Sebastian had given the oatmeal to someone else.

Suddenly, Vanessa remembered what happened yesterday in the office when Sebastian, asked Isabella if she wanted to have the oatmeal right in front of her. Although Isabella had refused at the time, there was a chance she had accepted it when Vanessa wasn't around.

Vanessa couldn't stay calm when she thought about that. She took out her phone and called Sebastian again. "I'm sorry, the number you dialed is not in service. Please try again later."

After hanging up, she immediately dialed Isabella's number. "I'm sorry, the number you dialed is not in service. Please try again later."

The same automated message infuriated Vanessa.

She then quickly called Laura. "Laura, send me the contact information of the new intern."

"Samantha? Why do you need her number?" Laura asked curiously.

"I want to ask her something," Vanessa said.

"What is it? Do you want me to ask for you?" Laura asked curiously.

But Vanessa was firm. There was no way she would tell Laura the things she didn't want to share. Eventually, Laura had no choice but to send her Samantha's number.

Vanessa immediately called Samantha. When Samantha answered the phone, she was very excited and showed extra respect when she addressed her. "Why are you calling me so early, Mrs. Landon? Is something wrong?"

"Samantha, you said yesterday that Isabella still lives in the school dorms, right?"

"Yes, why?"

"Are you at the dorms right now? I can't reach her on the phone, and I'm a bit worried. If you're free, could you go check if Isabella is in the dorms?"

Samantha didn't want to miss the opportunity to please Vanessa. She immediately agreed, saying, "I happen to be going back to the dorms, and I can be there in about five minutes. Just wait."

"Okay, take your time. No rush," Vanessa replied calmly. But after hanging up, she paced back and forth in the living room.

Five minutes quickly passed, and before she could call Samantha again, Samantha called her. "Mrs. Landon, I checked, and Isabella isn't in the dorms. Her bedding is untouched, so she definitely didn't come back last night."

Vanessa's speculation was right. She clenched her fingers and said, "Thank you, Samantha. You've been a great help."

As she was about to hang up, when Samantha stopped her. "Why were you looking for Isabella so early, Mrs. Landon? Didn't Mr. Landon come home last night?"

Vanessa was annoyed.

It didn't feel good to be exposed, especially since Vanessa valued her self-esteem. Her tone turned cold as she warned, "You shouldn't just say what's on your mind, Samantha."

"I won't, Mrs. Landon. I'm just worried for you. After all, I know Isabella. If she tries everything to seduce Mr. Landon, he definitely won't be able to resist."

Vanessa sneered, "She can't do that."

But Samantha retorted, "I used to think the same way, but Isabella is good at disguising herself. She only looks innocent. I trusted her too much before, which gave her the chance to seduce my boyfriend. She's deceived me once, Mrs. Landon. You need to be careful with Isabella."

Vanessa frowned and said, "Thank you for that reminder."

She wouldn't follow in Samantha's footsteps, because she was going find a way to get Isabella out of the Landon Group.

After hanging up, Samantha felt triumphant.

Matthew walked up from behind her and asked, "Why are you so happy?"

Samantha's expression turned worried again as she grabbed Matthew's hand and said, "Mrs. Landon called. She suspects that Isabella was with Mr. Landon last night. I just started there but I already heard rumors about Mr. Landon and Isabella. Could Mr. Landon really like Isabella?"

"That's impossible!" Matthew answered decisively, even a bit too conclusively.

Samantha looked at him strangely and asked, "How do you know?"

Matthew remained silent for a moment and then asked back, "Didn't you say Mr. Landon already has someone?"

"Yes. She used to be in the assistant department, and she's average-looking at best. But since she managed to stand out from the group of assistants to become Mr. Landon's girlfriend, there must be something outstanding about her. Why were you so certain that Mr. Landon doesn't like Isabella?"

"I'm not certain. It was just a gut feeling."

"A gut feeling? What gut feeling?"

Matthew didn't answer and changed the topic.

After calming Samantha down and dropping her off at class, Matthew sat in the car for a while. At this moment, his phone rang, and he glanced at the caller ID before answering. "Mom..."

Emma said, "It's your birthday today, Matthew. Are you and Isabella coming back for dinner? I've prepared Isabella's favorite food. Your dad won't be working late tonight, and I haven't seen Isabella in a long time. I really miss her."

Matthew remained silent for a long time before finally speaking, "Mom, Isabella and I broke up."