Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

Chapter 291: Huh? No, that’s not what I meant…

“Partnership?”

Ryan was completely lost, standing there in front of the three of them, trying to make sense of what was going on.

He had just gone to the bathroom for a moment, and suddenly, so much had happened. Had they really just discussed a partnership while he was gone?

“Miss Alice, has the partnership already started?”

Ryan asked Alice directly. This wasn’t just Alice’s business anymore. The second target of the Dangerous Events had become Ryan himself, so he couldn’t afford to be indifferent.

Wasn’t Mr. Langston just asking Alice to come over to discuss a potential partnership? How did it suddenly turn into a done deal?

“Miss Alice, it seems your assistant doesn’t quite understand how things have developed.”

Nella glanced at Ryan, as if trying to figure out whether he was genuinely clueless or just pretending.

She didn’t know Alice all that well, but from what she could sense, Alice cared about Ryan in the same way she did.

If Ryan was so important to Alice, why wouldn’t she tell him about something like this?

It seemed like they were still a bit different.

Ryan looked over at Alice. Her expression remained calm, and she didn’t rush to explain. Instead, she nodded toward Mr. Langston and spoke.

“Mr. Langston, I’ll take Miss Nella with me today. Once everything is settled, I’ll make sure she returns safely.”

The old man gave Alice a serious look. When Nella was mentioned, a hint of warmth flickered in his eyes, but his expression quickly turned stern. It was clear how much he valued this matter.

“I appreciate it, Miss Alice.”

Their cryptic conversation only left Ryan more confused. His head was spinning, and a bad feeling started to grow in the pit of his stomach.

Take her away?

Take her where?

No way…

Ryan didn’t wait for an explanation. He was already starting to panic.

Alice had always been sharp. You could see that with Mia and Anna. Could she have already figured out that something was off with Nella in such a short time and was planning to deal with her?

That would be terrifying…

“Miss Alice, is there some kind of misunderstanding here?”

Ryan asked Alice anxiously. Even though asking so directly made him seem flustered, and Alice might pick up on that, he couldn’t just sit by and do nothing.

He had just reunited with Bella, and there was no doubt that she had changed a lot over the years—so much that Ryan barely recognized her at first. But one thing hadn’t changed: his concern for Bella hadn’t faded with time.

“Misunderstanding? Well, maybe…”

Alice turned her head to look at Ryan. Her sharp gaze made him even more uneasy.

But Ryan’s worry wasn’t necessary. Alice just stared at him for a moment, then glanced over at Bella, before shrugging and letting out a sigh.

“I didn’t get a chance to tell you earlier, but I have a partnership with someone in the subway district. That person is Mr. Maxwell Langston.”

“The Langston family is a big name in business. It’s thanks to their help that things have gone so smoothly.”

As Alice said this, she hesitated slightly on the word “smoothly.” Things were supposed to go smoothly, but with everything that had happened, it was clear there had been some serious setbacks.

“I see… So, what did you mean by ‘taking her away’?”

Ryan knew Alice had business partners. In fact, earlier that morning, Alice had been questioning whether she could fully trust them. But with everything that had happened since, Ryan had forgotten to ask her about it.

So, what was Alice’s stance on the Langston family now?

Did she trust them completely, or was she still suspicious?

“Well… to put it simply, Nella will be staying with us until this is all over.”

“Got it.”

Alice is definitely suspicious of the Langston family now. The person who stole the documents clearly knew exactly where the bidding proposal was kept, and only a handful of high-level people on Alice’s side were aware of that.

If there wasn’t a traitor on Alice’s team, then it was only natural to suspect the Langston family.

Ryan nodded seriously, then suddenly looked up at the two girls in front of him, his eyes wide with shock.

Had he just missed something important?

“Living together…?”

He swallowed nervously, glancing at the girl now called Nella—who he still thought of as Bella. In his memory, Bella had always been a good kid who never lied. If this was really happening, he figured he could tell just by her reaction.

Nella stood calmly behind Mr. Langston, and when Ryan’s gaze swept over her, she simply nodded without any change in expression.

Alice, however, was clearly not happy with Ryan looking at Nella. She stepped forward, grabbed Ryan’s wrist, and pulled him back behind her with a firm tug.

She shot him a fierce glare, signaling for him to shut up and stay put. Only then did Alice adjust her expression and sneak a quick glance at Nella.

Nella didn’t react at all. The whole “living together” arrangement was just a way to send a message to the outside world. She didn’t seem to care.

Alice’s and Mr. Langston’s decision was actually a smart move, and it helped ease the tension Ryan had been feeling. Whoever was targeting Alice was still lurking in the shadows, and actively hunting them down would be time-consuming and difficult. But if Alice and Nella appeared to be getting closer, with the backing of both the underworld and the business elite, those plotting against Alice would have to think twice about their next move.

Of course, the Langston family was also offering Alice support, which was crucial for improving her current situation.

Alice was already a bit annoyed, so Ryan wisely decided not to push his luck. He stood behind her, quietly thinking about how things might unfold from here.

Alice wasn’t going out of her way to target Bella anymore, but was this all part of Bella’s plan?

“Miss Alice, I’ll leave Nella in your care. I’m sorry for the trouble.”

That was really the main issue they had to discuss. There were still plenty of other things to go over, but either they were too sensitive to talk about in front of Bella and Ryan, or they were too trivial and could be handled by subordinates.

With Mr. Langston’s words, the meeting came to an end. From start to finish, no one mentioned what had happened in the banquet hall earlier. That incident wasn’t important enough to be worth discussing.

There was clearly some tension between Nella and Alice, and Mr. Langston was well aware of it. If Alice had her people search the Langston estate and Mr. Langston didn’t know about it, they wouldn’t be in any position to work with Alice in the first place.

Only the naive talk about feelings. Real businesspeople only care about one thing: profit.

This was a decision made by Alice and Mr. Langston, so Ryan didn’t have much of a say. He just scratched his nose and stole a glance at Bella, trying to figure out what she was thinking.

The note she had left him earlier had been so affectionate, calling herself his “forever little sister.” But now, not only did she not recognize him, she had even cornered him in the bathroom and threatened him.

Why was Bella doing this? What did she really want?

They had arrived with just the two of them, but by the time everything with the Langston family was wrapped up, they were leaving with three. However, Nella rode in a Langston family car and didn’t travel with Ryan and Alice.

“Miss Alice, I still think this whole thing hasn’t been thought through enough.”

“Yeah, I know it’s not ideal. We don’t exactly have a lot of space at home.”

“Huh? No, that’s not what I meant…”

“So, why don’t you come upstairs and stay with me? I’m sure Miss Nella wouldn’t want to share a room with me.”