He Wouldn't Claim Me — Another Man Did-Chapter 135 - 122: Nervous

Isabelle didn’t fall asleep until the early hours of the morning.

Shane Sterling was possessed by a frenzied energy, as if he wanted to make up for everything they had missed in the past few months. Her small wooden bed was almost shaken apart.

They slept in each other’s arms until after nine in the morning.

They had been so exhausted by the end of the night that they both forgot to set an alarm. If Isabelle’s phone hadn’t suddenly started ringing, they probably would have slept through the entire morning.

Isabelle’s eyes fluttered open at the sound of the ringtone.

The call was from her mother, Susan Dudley.

Isabelle glanced at Shane Sterling sleeping beside her and suddenly felt the guilt of a child caught red-handed by her mother.

She wanted to take the call in the bathroom, but as soon as she sat up, Shane Sterling pulled her back into his arms.

"Take it here."

"Then don’t make a sound."

Shane Sterling looked at her, his eyes half-closed. "Why? Am I some kind of secret?"

"I haven’t had the chance to tell my mom we got back together."

Shane Sterling understood what she meant and nodded.

Seeing that he agreed, Isabelle answered the phone.

"Mom."

This call from Susan Dudley wasn’t actually her own idea.

Last month, Susan Dudley had opened a small snack shop in North Lane, officially ending her days as a street vendor. As soon as the shop opened, business was booming.

Jude Dudley had his own building materials store to manage and had no time to help out, so he arranged for his older sister, Mrs. Dudley, to lend Susan a hand. Mrs. Dudley was great in every way—efficient, warm, and cheerful—but she had a passion for matchmaking. After successfully helping Jude Dudley’s son, Leo Dudley, find a partner, she got a real taste for it and now asked everyone she met if they knew of any single, marriage-aged men or women.

Ever since Mrs. Dudley learned that Susan Dudley’s older daughter, Isabelle, was single and of marrying age, she had been plotting to set her up on a blind date.

And just a few days ago, when Mrs. Dudley’s neighbor’s son returned from studying abroad, she immediately earmarked this promising catch for Isabelle.

Mrs. Dudley went to great lengths to find out about the young man’s personality and preferences. She brought up the blind date to Susan Dudley more than once, and Susan, unable to refuse any longer, had no choice but to call Isabelle.

"Isabelle, it’s been a while since your breakup. If you have time, maybe we could arrange for you two to meet? I’ve met the young man, and he’s very polite..."

"AHEM!"

Before Isabelle could say anything, Shane Sterling, who was beside her, suddenly started coughing.

Hearing a man’s voice, Susan Dudley quickly asked, "Isabelle, are you busy? Did I interrupt your work?"

Isabelle shot Shane Sterling a glare. He took the phone from her hand and greeted her mother politely, "Hello, Auntie. This is Sean."

Susan Dudley was stunned.

"I’m so sorry, Auntie. I was in a car accident and hospitalized for a while, so I didn’t get a chance to visit you or to tell you that Isabelle and I are back together."

When Susan Dudley heard that Shane Sterling had been in a car accident, she was instantly worried. "A car accident? Are you all right?"

Hearing Susan Dudley’s concern, Shane Sterling happily raised his eyebrows at Isabelle. "Don’t worry, Auntie. I’m fine now."

"That’s good, that’s good. You both need to be careful when you’re out and about."

"Okay, Auntie, we will. I’m at Isabelle’s place right now. We’re about to head to the office, but we’ll come visit you as soon as we’re free."

By mentioning he was at Isabelle’s home at this hour, that sly man Shane Sterling was all but telling Susan Dudley he had stayed the night.

Susan Dudley had always liked Shane Sterling. She had been disappointed for a long time after he and Isabelle broke up, so now that she heard they were back together, she was naturally happier than anyone.

"Okay, okay, okay. You two get to your work then."

"Okay, goodbye, Auntie."

"Goodbye."

Shane Sterling hung up and handed the phone back to Isabelle.

"I told you not to make a sound, and you ended up taking the call," Isabelle said.

"What was I supposed to do, let you go on a blind date?" Shane Sterling pulled Isabelle back into his embrace. "There’s no way I’m losing you a second time."

Isabelle understood his insecurity.

"You’re overthinking it, President Sterling. I wouldn’t go on a blind date anyway."

"Why not?"

"Because I love you."

Isabelle knew that on the long road of loving her, Shane Sterling had walked alone for a very, very long time. His deep affection and protectiveness had nurtured her own sense of security in their relationship, and she wanted to give him that same steadfastness and security in return.

"What did you say?" Shane Sterling looked into her eyes. "Say it again."

"I said I love you. Shane Sterling, I love you."

--

From that day on, Shane Sterling made visiting Susan Dudley a top priority.

Unfortunately, Isabelle had to go out of town on a business trip the very next day.

She didn’t return until a week later.

While Isabelle was away, Shane Sterling wasn’t idle. He prepared everything needed for visiting an elder and even got a gift for Sienna Prescott. The moment Isabelle was back, he arranged a time with her.

"Isabelle, how about I go home with you to visit Auntie tomorrow?"

"Okay."

The next day, Shane Sterling went to Isabelle’s place early in the morning to pick her up.

He was wearing a black suit, a white shirt, and a perfectly knotted tie. At first glance, his attire didn’t seem much different from usual, but Isabelle felt he looked especially formal today. She just couldn’t put her finger on what exactly it was.

"Why are you staring at me?" Shane Sterling cleared his throat, a little self-consciously.

"Just admiring how handsome you are."

"Is there a day I’m not handsome?"

Isabelle laughed.

Shane Sterling opened the passenger-side door for her.

They set off for North Lane together. While making a turn, Shane Sterling had a lapse in concentration and took the wrong exit.

It was a mistake he wouldn’t normally make.

Isabelle finally figured out where that formal air was coming from: it was revealed in his stiffness. The usually calm and relaxed Shane Sterling seemed unusually nervous today.

"Don’t be nervous," Isabelle reassured him. "It’s not like you haven’t met my mom before. You’ve interacted with her, so you should know she’s a kind and simple person. She won’t give you a hard time."

"Mm."

Shane Sterling gave a noncommittal grunt and made a U-turn at the next intersection to head back.

They soon arrived at North Lane.

Since her mother Susan Dudley’s snack shop had opened, Isabelle had only visited twice. She was just too busy with work, especially lately, with the opening of her new studio and the dance charity classes consuming a huge amount of her energy. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

If Shane Sterling hadn’t suggested coming back today, she might have scheduled something else for work.

To her surprise, both Jude Dudley’s building materials store and her mother’s snack shop were closed today.

Jude Dudley might have gone to a client’s construction site, but it was strange for her mother, Susan Dudley, to have her shop closed. Isabelle knew her mother was the most hardworking person imaginable; back when she was a street vendor, she was out there rain or shine. ’I wonder if something happened today.’

"How strange. My mom’s shop isn’t even open today."

Her words nearly made Shane Sterling miss another turn.

"What’s with you today?" Isabelle sensed something was off and couldn’t help teasing him. "It’s just meeting my mom. President Sterling has been engaged twice, after all. Don’t act like you’ve never been through this before."

"Now that you mention it, I’m even more nervous." Shane Sterling looked at her. "Auntie won’t look down on me for being engaged twice, will she?"

"She won’t. You had your reasons, after all. My mom is very open-minded."

"What about you? Do you mind?"

"If I minded, would I still be with you?" Isabelle squeezed his hand. "You silly goose, stop overthinking. No one can tear us apart."

Shane Sterling smiled. "That’s a relief."