The Substitute Bride

"I feel much better now. Thank you so much for your help, Ms. Xia. You saved my life! You can rest assured that I'll pay you back for all my medical treatment expenses. I'll transfer the money to your account as soon as I get discharged. Please leave your details with me," Nick gratefully said.

"It's nothing, really. I just did what anyone would do, so please don't let it burden you." After a pause, Sheryl continued, "Nick…I've been curious about something. I heard that your company was about to start running. It's such a critical moment when your employees should be there preparing for it. But when you fainted, no one was around. Why is that?" Finally, she was able to voice her questions out. She had been wondering about this since she saw him lying unconscious in the office.

Hearing her questions, Nick began to explain to her what he had been through. "It's a long story…" As he told her, he became more and more frustrated.

According to Nick's story, Sheryl and Isla already knew the reason why their company couldn't open on time.

In truth, it wasn't so different from what they saw on the news—Nick had a falling out with his partner who, in anger, left the company with all of the start-up capital. The partner practically disappeared since then.

"So that means your company probably won't be set up, right?" Isla asked him directly. It was better to hear the truth straight from the company's founder. Whether or not the preparation work was going smoothly was important to her.

Since it wasn't his business alone, Isla wouldn't let him avoid answering the question. If the situation could be stabilized, they could establish a proper business partnership with him.

"The reason why I was working alone at the company was that I had some hope that I could change its current situation on my own. I've devoted so much to this company…You have no idea how hard I've been working to get it started. I don't want to lose it. It may not be in operation yet, but I know it has a promising future," said Nick.

Even if he did believe what he said, he still looked rather frustrated.

The complex emotions laced in his words reached Sheryl. It was true—he had put in so much work and effort into starting the company, and missing out on the opportunity to laun

w how to comfort him as they weren't all that familiar with Nick.

Eventually, he explained, "I'm an orphan, so there's no family to take care of me."

His reveal surprised them both.

"The only person I could rely on was a classmate from college—he was my partner. Because of our contradictions, he ended up taking away all our money." Not everyone could understand that feeling of betrayal.

The two girls could see deep sadness in his eyes and they knew he was on the edge of desperation.

"So… no one can come to look after you here?" asked Sheryl, feeling pity for him.

"It's okay. I can find a nurse to do it. Please don't worry about me," said Nick. From her expression, he could tell that she was already worried. Her care touched him and he tried to comfort her.

"Are you sure you have enough money to hire one?" Isla voiced her doubt. Though she didn't mean to offend him, Isla knew that if he had the money, he would be able to pay Sheryl back immediately, before he even left the hospital.

Nick's heart sank when Isla saw through him. Never would he have thought that one day, he'd be so transparent to strangers. Luckily for him, his saviors were the ones who discovered his secret.

"I have enough for now." Not wanting his image to be torn apart, Nick pretended to be calm and relaxed.

Growing up as an orphan, he worked harder than anyone else who had support from their parents—this turned him into a competitive, driven person who was determined to overcome any obstacle in his path.