After the Secret Wedding Rise of My Queen

Chapter 256 A Date and Isabel's Special Outfit When Isabel saw the sudden glimmer in Xander's eyes, a small pang of unease stirred in her chest.

Was it too late to regret her decision? But that thought was fleeting, something she only entertained for a moment. Isabel had always been someone who stuck to her word. She hated people who went back on their promises, and she didn't want to becone herself. "Are you serious?" Xander asked, his deep gaze locking onto Isabel like he could see right through her. The words had already been said what else could she do? Isabel straightened her shoulders, bracing herself. "Yeah, I'm serious. But don't take it too far. If you're thinking of askingto do anything, uh ... inappropriate, letjust say I'm not that kind of person. I have principles." "Don't worry, I won't go too far," Xander said, his thin lips curling into a smile. His slightly upturned eyes held a hint of amusement, barely masking the grin threatening to break free.

Seeing his expression, Isabel grew even more uneasy. She couldn't shake the feeling that Xander was about to ask for something... unexpected.

Xander leaned closer to her ear, the proximity so close that, if he wanted to, he could easily take her soft, pink earlobe between his teeth.

"My request isn't over the line. Tomorrow's my day off. Go on a date with me," he said in a low voice.

Isabel let out a small sigh of relief. That really wasn't too much to ask. It was well within the range of something she could accept.

But- "If I'm not mistaken, tomorrow's Friday. Don't you have work?" "Not tomorrow. I'm taking the day off," Xander replied simply.

Isabel raised a brow. "You're the CEO of an entire company, and you're just taking a day off like that? Isn't that a bit... irresponsible? What if your employees find out?" She knew how strict Xander's workplace policies were. Unless it was an exceptional situation, anyone who skipped work or took leave without a valid reason would be immediately fired.

For Xander, rules and order were non-negotiable, the foundation of how he ran his company.

So when she heard him casually mention taking the day off, her shock was palpable.

Still, what was already surprising beceven more shocking.

"Then everyone gets the day off," Xander said casually.

To Isabel's ears, his words were nothing short of shocking.

"Wait, what? What did you just say? Ev-everyone gets the day off?" she stammered.

He was really going to give the entire company a day off just so he could go on a date with her? Just to stop the employees from gossiping? "Yes. Tomorrow, we're going on a date," Xander replied with a completely serious expression, not a trace of humor on his face.

Isabel stood there, mouth agape, staring at him for several long seconds.

When it finally sunk in that he was not joking, she couldn't help the twitch that started at the corner of her mouth and spread to her eyes.

"You're really... you're really something else. If you actually do that, do you know what your mom's going to say? She'll probably point at my nose and accuseof being skind of home-wrecking temptress!" To Isabel, the description felt almost too perfect.

Xander, looking completely at ease, smiled and kept his arms around her. "If it's for you, I don't mind being a king who destroys his own kingdom." Isabel was speechless.

Her urrent state of utter disbelief was so strong that no words could adequately express it.

In the end, Isabel flat-out refused Xander's outrageous plan. Instead, she compromised and agreed to go on a date with him over the weekend.

When the weekend came, Xander was up bright and early.

He had already showered, dressed, and was now sitting on the couch, waiting patiently for Isabel. Samuel cdownstairs, glanced at Xander sitting on the couch, and raised an eyebrow at his outfit. He couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you going on a date with Isabel today? Why are you dressed like that?" Xander looked down at himself, taking in his neatly tailored suit and crisp dress shirt. He thought it was a perfectly fine choice.

"Is there a problem?" he asked.

Samuel scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "It's not about whether there's a problem. It's just... you're going on a date, not to a board meeting. You don't need to dress so formal and stiff." Xander, however, clearly didn't agree with him at all.

"You don't get it. It's because it's a date that I have to dress formally. It shows how much I value it," Xander said as he smoothed out his perfectly pressed suit, not a wrinkle in sight. Samuel's lips twitched in disbelief. Who doesn't get it, you or me? "What's with that look? You don't agree with me?" Xander asked casually. He was in a good mood, knowing he was about to go on a date with Isabel, so he entertained ssmall talk with Samuel while waiting for her to cdownstairs.

"Of course I don't! Who dresses like you for a date?" "Have you ever been on a date?" Xander shot back, immediately shutting Samuel down. And he didn't stop there. "You've never even had a girlfriend. How reliable do you think your advice is?" Samuel was instantly speechless. Man, we're brothers. Did you really have to go that hard? "Hey, just because I've never eaten pork doesn't mean I've never seen a pig run, okay? You've seen those couples at parks or amusement parks, right? Do any of them dress like they're negotiating a world peace treaty?" Samuel fired back. Samuel had barely finished when the sound of footsteps echoed from upstairs. It was Isabel. She must be coming down.

The second Xander heard the noise, he lost all interest in continuing the conversation. His gaze immediately shifted away from Samuel and fixed on the staircase.

As soon as he saw Isabel, his eyes lit up.

Samuel rolled his eyes. Wow. Abandon your own brother the moment a girl shows up. Nice.

But before Samuel could finish mentally grumbling, Isabel stepped into his line of sight, and oh, wow.

He, like Xander, was caught off guard.

Isabel looked completely different from her usual mature and alluring style.

Today, she had gone for a cute, youthful look that was fresh and playful.

She wore a crisp white blouse paired with pale yellow overalls. One strap of the overalls hung loose on purpose, giving her outfit a cheeky, charming touch.

Not only that, but Isabel had changed her hairstyle too.

She had braided her hair into two neat pigtails and added an adorable, delicate hair clip on one side.

The result? She looked absolutely sweet and irresistibly cute, practically radiating charm.

At spoint-Isabel wasn't sure exactly when-Xander had stood up. Without any hesitation, he walked over to her side, his gaze traveling from her head to her toes and then back up again.

Even though the person standing in front of him was the sIsabel, this version of her gave him a completely different feeling. Then et fresh look brought a surge of excitement, and he found himself utterly captivated.

"Isabel, you look way too cute like this," Samuel blurted out, not holding back his praise as he openly admired her.

His eyes scanned her outfit from top to bottom, full of enthusiasm.

Samuel had never been particularly resistant to cute things.

In fact, his ideal type had always leaned toward the cute and playful-exactly like Isabel looked now.

She was absolutely stunning.

But just as Samuel was staring at her, completely entranced, Xander stepped forward, positioning himself squarely between Samuel and Isabel, effectively cutting off his view.

Samuel blinked, then let out a sigh of exasperation. "Xander, you're seriously so stingy. What's the big deal? I'm just looking!" "Nope. She's your sister-in-law," Xander replied flatly.

To make his point even clearer, Xander deliberately reached for Isabel's hand right in front of Samuel. Not just a casual hold, either-he intertwined their fingers, locking them together. Isabel glanced down at their hands, examining the way their fingers were laced together. It felt... a little embarrassing, to be honest.

Still, she had already agreed to go on a date with him, and he hadn't done anything inappropriate Holding M hands was a pretty normal thing-friends held hands all the time, didn't they? With that thought, Isabel decided to just let it slide. Once they left the house, Isabel quickly noticed something strange-Xander kept sneaking glances at her.

She turned her head sharply, and sure enough, she caught him red-handed.