The Billionaire's Regret

Chapter 54

Wyatt Reed’s heart tightened, and his eyes clouded. He was utterly unaware of Ivy’s existence. He had no idea she could play the violin so beautifully, nor that she smoked. “Because I was scared you wouldn’t like it, I never smoked in front of you before, so you never got to see it.” Ivy felt relatively weak every time she donated blood. Wyatt escorted Alice Perez, and Ivy’s sole company was to light a cigarette and smoked. During those trying times, she became strongly addicted to cigarettes. Ivy’s lips were hooked up, but her eyes were a bit downcast. She reverted to her usual self a split second later. She laughed as she looked at Wyatt’s drooping eyelids. “Would you like to hear my terms?” Ivy got right to the subject without waiting for his response. “Ask Alice Perez to give me the amount of blood I’ve donated to her.” It does not have to be done all at once. In any case, she should be able to reimburse me within a year.” Wyatt’s head jerked upward. “What?” Ivy burst out laughing. “I considered it. My blood is so valuable that I should use it to save individuals who truly need to be saved, rather than spending it on this horrible creature. I was so stupid before, but it’s not too late for me to snap out of my delusion. I want to reclaim my blood. In exchange, I’ll give you the pipe, and we’ll no longer owe each other anything.” Alice Perez was merely attempting to annoy Ivy, so she would pretend to be sick or hurt and beg Ivy to transfuse blood for her. Ivy was well aware of it, but Wyatt was unconvinced. Ivy used to be irritated, but now it all seemed insignificant. She made a clear distinction from the past and felt complete again once Alice returned her blood. Isn’t Alice Perez returning soon? She wants to get even with that woman! So, which will he pick? Alice Perez or his family heirloom? Ivy was eagerly awaiting Wyatt’s response. She smiled gently and tossed the cigarette butt in the ashtray in front of her before standing up. Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“You don’t have to respond to me so immediately. Consider it,” she said and left. Wyatt’s eyes turned twisted when he looked behind her. How badly did Ivy despise Alice? How much did she despise this marriage that she wanted every single drop of blood back? Wyatt dialed the number of Ken, his assistant. “Consider how much blood Ivy has donated to Alice over the years.” Ken paused before responding, “Yes, Mr. Reed.” Ken then responded to Wyatt’s question in a matter of minutes. “Sir, Miss Ivy has donated a total of 14,400 ccs of blood to Ms. Perez. An adult’s blood volume ranges between 4.000- and 5.000-ml. Miss. Ivy’s blood donations are equivalent to three persons’ total amount of blood over the years. That means Miss Ivy had depleted her whole blood supply three times,” he explained. Wyatt hung up the phone as soon as Ken finished his sentence. She genuinely bled herself three times as a result of me?! he thought. However, for the last three years, he had been utterly unconscious of her resentment and fortitude. Wyatt’s heart suddenly felt pushed down by a boulder, and he found it difficult to breathe. Ivy stipulated that Alice would repay her within a year. This proved how much she despised them. Wyatt was irritated. He knew there was no way he could swap Alice for the emerald pipe. That bomb should have been dropped on Wyatt while he was in the army, but Lawrence jumped on him and shielded the explosion with his body. Before Lawrence died, his sole concern was Alice’s health, so Wyatt swore to do everything he could to help Alice live a long and healthy life. Wyatt’s eyes sparkled with agony as he reflected on the past. Ivy came out and found Greg standing nearby, waiting for her. They headed to the door and encountered Liam Saver, who was sitting in the foyer. While talking on the phone, he grinned adoringly and lovingly. Liam hurriedly said a few words and hung up when he saw Ivy. “Miss Ivy, did you have a pleasant chat?” Liam asked pleasantly. “It’s for me, but I doubt it’s for the guy inside,” she replied and offered a sliver of a smile. Liam Saver cocked his brow. “In any case, I was the one who walked over the line in the first place. If you’d like, Miss Ivy, you can accompany me to meet our main research team. Not everyone will

get the chance to see it.” Ivy agreed without hesitation. After all, if she were aware of ABC Corporation’s most recent research technologies, she would be able to grasp the market first and have a greater understanding of the future development of AI. “Mr. Greg, I’m afraid you don’t have access to the lab because it contains our company’s secrets,” Liam stated as the three of them walked out. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure Miss Ivy returns safely,” he added. Greg gave Ivy a worried look. Ivy recognized Liam’s fear and nodded to Greg. “You may go back first. I’m going to be all right,” she said. “Of course, ma’am,” Greg replied. Ivy and Liam entered Liam’s car. They sat at the back, with the curtains drawn, unable to see what was happening outside. Liam Saver is that wary, huh? Ivy wondered to herself. And she’s much more excited about this visit now. “Mister Greg was Cooper Morgan’s right-hand man, but now he works for you. Mr. Morgan appears to place high importance on you. It’s no surprise that you’re adamant,” Liam stated. “When I mentioned remarriage earlier, you just flatly rejected it. Well, who will make the same mistake with such a strong supporter, right?” Liam spoke with a smile painted on his face as he lifted his gold-rimmed glasses. Ivy paused before responding calmly, “Mr. Morgan appreciates me because he has a wonderful eye.” Liam cocked his brow. It appears Ivy will not give Wyatt the time of day no matter what, he thought. Their car drove into an underground parking garage after twenty minutes. The encircling lights were as dazzling as day as soon as they stepped out of the car. The building was painted in a consistent shade of Morandi Grey that was not easy to discern. Perhaps it was constructed in this manner to be invisible. Ivy was escorted to the elevator by Liam. He extended his hand to scan his fingerprints on the screen in front of him. The elevator door eventually opened after three instances of recognition. Liam reached out his hand. “After you,” he said.

Ivy was taken aback and delighted. She entered the elevator and noticed only one button that led to the 17th level, with no other choices. “I think you should blindfold me, right?” Ivy cracked a joke. Liam burst out laughing. “No, you won’t be able to take away any key secrets, so you’re free to look.” Ivy exhaled a breath of relief and looked around with excitement in her eyes. Ivy noticed a hallway lined with silver-gray glass as they exited the elevator. Even though almost all of the walls were constructed of translucent material, it wasn’t easy to see through any of them, even with a close look. It felt like they were in a top-secret laboratory. Liam led her into a dark, deserted room. He simply strolled to the other side of the room and pressed his hand against the glass wall. Some thin curving lines containing some sort of data came out of nowhere on the glass. Liam took a step forward and lined his pupils with a point on the glass. The wall in front of him parted as his iris was recognized. Ivy trailed following and discovered another long gray glass tunnel. It would be like traveling through a maze if no one led the way. Soon after, Liam pushed through a door and declared, “This is it.” When Ivy came in, she noticed a few people inside wearing white lab coats and working on something with their heads down. Someone was rotating with a gyroscope-like gadget while another was chatting with a computer. “Everyone left work. The rest of us here are all single,” Liam joked, his face relaxed. Someone heard Liam’s voice. A man with curly hair raised his head and retorted. “Tsk, Tsk... Don’t make fun of single individuals like us. We, too, have emotions—Oh! there’s a visitor?” When Ivy felt something touching her shoes, she smiled and wanted to say hello. When she peered down, she noticed it was the small tiger again! The small tiger grinned as he stared at her. The stripes on its brow shifted. “Hello, pretty lady! We meet again! I missed you!”