THE RELUCTANT TYCOON

CHAPTER SIX : THE DESPERATE ONE

Isabella stood in the garden, staring at her phone screen where Marcus's contact had gone dark. Her hands were shaking, though whether from cold or something else, she couldn't tell.

"Isabella."

She turned to find Victor standing in the doorway, his expression a perfect mixture of concern and disapproval. Behind him, she could see her family still clustered around the watch box, her father holding a jeweler's loupe up to his eye.

"Don't tell me you're actually falling for that fool's act," Victor said, walking toward her. His voice was gentle, but there was steel underneath. "There's no way he could be a billionaire. He's just saying all that to get your attention."

Isabella looked back at her phone, at Marcus's last message still glowing on the screen. Who are you? She'd asked. But he hadn't answered.

"The watch is real," she said quietly. "My father confirmed it. That's a genuine Patek Philippe from 1957. It's worth …"

"I know what it's worth." Victor took her phone from her hands, his fingers warm against her cold ones. "But that doesn't mean Marcus bought it. Don't you see what's happening here? He's desperate. He saw you moving on, saw that you were going to marry someone successful, and he panicked."

Isabella wanted to argue, but the words died in her throat. Because Victor was making sense. Wasn't he?

"Think about it logically," Victor continued, guiding her back toward the house. "A man who couldn't afford to pay your electric bill suddenly has two hundred thousand dollars for a watch? It doesn't add up, Isabella. He borrowed it. Or stole it. Or maybe he's been hiding money from you this whole time, which honestly makes it even worse."

"He said he was testing me," Isabella whispered. "Testing whether I'd love him without money."

Victor's jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. "And that doesn't make you angry? He had resources and watched you struggle? Watched your mother's boutique nearly go bankrupt? What kind of man does that to someone he claims to love?"

Isabella felt something cold settle in her stomach. When Victor put it that way...

"You're right," she said, but her voice sounded hollow even to her own ears. "You're absolutely right. I can't believe I'm even considering his words."

"You're kind-hearted," Victor said, pulling her close. "That's one of the things I love about you. But Marcus is taking advantage of that kindness. He's a desperate man making desperate claims."

They walked back into the kitchen, where the scene was chaos. Daniel was on his phone, apparently trying to find out where someone could rent luxury watches. Grace was arguing with Gerald about whether they should call the police. The other guests were filming everything, already posting to social media.

"This is insane," Daniel said, lowering his phone. "I found three places in the city that rent out high-end watches for special occasions. Photo shoots, proposals, that kind of thing. Marcus probably borrowed this for the night, hoping to impress us."

"That makes sense," Grace said, relief evident in her voice. "I knew there had to be an explanation. Marcus Chen wouldn't have that kind of money. It's impossible."

"Exactly," Gerald agreed, setting down the jeweler's loupe. "He's a low-life who went and borrowed luxury items just to claim he's rich. It's pathetic, really. Desperate."

Isabella looked at the watch sitting in its velvet box. Even she could see it was beautiful, real, valuable. But her family's explanation made sense. More sense than the alternative.

Because if Marcus really had money all along, if he really had been testing her...

She couldn't finish that thought. It made her too angry.

"We should forget about this," Victor said, addressing the whole room. "Marcus made a scene, embarrassed himself, and now he's gone. Let's not let him ruin your grandparents' anniversary any further."

"Agreed," Gerald said firmly. "And Isabella, I want you to make sure he signs those divorce papers tomorrow. No more delays. I don't care what kind of show he tries to put on, I want him out of this family legally and permanently."

Isabella nodded numbly. "Tomorrow at noon. At the boutique. He agreed."

"Good." Grace squeezed her daughter's shoulder. "This will all be over soon, darling. Then you can move forward with Victor and forget this nightmare ever happened."

The party gradually returned to normal. The guests filtered back to the main room, already spinning the story into gossip. Did you hear about Isabella's husband? Tried to pretend he was rich with a borrowed watch. So embarrassing.

But Isabella couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

She excused herself and went to the bathroom, locking the door behind her. In the mirror, her face looked pale, her eyes uncertain. She pulled out her phone and googled Marcus's name.

The hospital video came up immediately. Over five million views now. Comments flooded the screen:

Who is this guy?

he's actually rich and just dresses like that

No way, probably borrowed money to look good on camera

This is staged, has to be

But buried in the comments, one stood out:

I work in finance. That transaction pinged our international monitoring system. The account that paid has connections to Liang Industries. This isn't some random guy.

Isabella's heart started pounding. She typed "Liang Industries" into the search bar.

The results made her dizzy. A multi-billion dollar conglomerate based in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Real estate, technology, manufacturing, finance. Family-owned. Patriarch Raymond Liang, but there were mentions of other family members, including…

The bathroom door rattled. "Isabella? You okay in there?" Victor's voice.

She quickly closed the browser and flushed the toilet for effect. "Fine! Just a minute."

When she opened the door, Victor was standing there with two champagne glasses. "Thought you might need this."

She took the glass, her hand still shaking slightly. Victor noticed.

"You're thinking about him, aren't you?" His voice was soft, understanding. "About what he said."

"It's just... what if…"

"What if what?" Victor set down his glass and took both her hands. "Isabella, listen to me. I've seen men like Marcus before. Cons. Manipulators. They prey on kind women like you. They make grand claims and put on elaborate shows to keep you hooked."

"But the watch…"

"Could be stolen. Could be rented. Could be fake and your father's friend who 'authenticated' it was in on the scam." Victor's eyes were intense, sincere. "I know this is hard. You spent two years with him. Part of you wants to believe he's not as bad as he seems. But sometimes the simple answer is the right one: Marcus Chen is a broke, desperate man who will say anything to avoid losing you."

Isabella wanted to believe that. It was easier than the alternative. Easier than thinking she'd abandoned someone who could have helped her all along.

"You're right," she said finally. "I'm overthinking this."

Victor smiled and kissed her forehead. "That's my girl. Now come on, your grandfather wants to make a toast."

Meanwhile, across the city, Marcus sat in the back of the armored car as it pulled up to a building he hadn't seen in two years. The Peninsula Tower, a luxury high-rise where he'd once kept a penthouse under a shell company.

James was waiting in the lobby, looking more stressed than Marcus had ever seen him.

"We have a problem," Ja

mes said immediately. "Actually, several problems."