LOGIN~Isabel~I watched Professor Alister throughout the lecture, trying to see if I could get an idea of what might be going through his head. But he just glanced over the rows of students a few times, lecturing normal like before.The class ended two hours later. He assigned an area of concentration to read for the exams, and as the students filed out of the room, Professor Alister stayed behind at the podium. Chloe and I packed our bags and stood up to leave. I could feel the nervous tension coming off her body.As we passed the door, his voice stopped us."Miss Adams, can you meet me in my office right now? And you, Miss Mayfield," he said. He didn't wait for a response, just passed us carrying his folder.We followed him closely down the hall until he reached his office. He called Chloe inside and closed the door, leaving me to sit on the chairs outside.A minute later, my phone beeped with a text. I snatched it out of my pocket quickly, my heart leaping with the thought that it
~Isabel~The warning in his voice was crystal clear. I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. My mom went quiet, her eyes darted between us as if she suspected something was amiss.I quickly grabbed more fruit, put it on my plate, and forced myself to finish my milk in one gulp. "I will be heading to my room. I need to read for my exams. Thank you for breakfast," I said to them.I picked up my plate and walked out into the hallway. As I reached the stairs, my feet slowed down. I kept replaying Arthur's look in my head. I felt like he suspected William was using a work excuse just to take me to New York. But then I wondered why William hadn't just informed his dad and my mom like he said he would. He had gone to see Arthur this morning and spent over two hours in there before leaving. What had they been discussing if he didn't mention the weekend trip? Had he changed his mind?Lost in thought, I rounded the corner and almost bumped right into Mrs. Higgins."Sorry," I muttered
~Isabel~I stood frozen in the middle of my room, staring at the closed door.I tried to make sense of William's last words before he walked out, but the whole thing had become a knotted mess in my head.I crossed the floor and looked out through my window. The rain from a few hours ago had left the grounds soaked, and his black Bentley remained parked outside on the wet pavement. He was still talking to his father.My stomach twisted into a tight knot.I just hoped he wouldn't confront Arthur over anything I had told him this morning.Since it was the weekend, I headed into the bathroom for a shower, planning to spend the rest of my day studying for my upcoming law exams. I stood under the hot spray, letting the water run over my face, trying to wash the anxiety away. As I stepped out and wiped the steam from the mirror, I paused to look at my reflection.I had added a little weight recently. It was weird. I felt constantly stressed and stretched thin, yet my cheeks were flushed p
~Isabel~"I think I have to go warn him to stop meddling in this," he said, getting up roughly from the bed to snatch his clothes off the floor."No, William, please don't. I beg you. Please," I pleaded as real fear built up in my mind. "You will spoil everything. Think about this first.""I have nothing to lose, Isabel. I have to stop whatever plan he may be thinking about this before he takes it too far, and he can't do anything to you." He shoved his arms into his shirt."I can take care of you myself…your car, your tuition, anything you need. Even with the internship, the company is mine now!"He raked his hands through his hair to arrange his tousled hair. I dragged my nightgown over my body to stand in front of him, blocking his path to the door."You're freaking out again," I reasoned, touching his hands that remained clenched into fists. "Hey, look at me. You had your plans before you accepted his deal for you to marry Juliana. He is your dad. I know he means well for you ev
~Isabel~"You are not serious, are you?" I asked, watching his face for any sign of humor."Do I look like I am joking?" he said, his voice dropped into a tone that showed me he felt insulted by my doubt."No, no. It's just, how do I pull it off? Your dad, my mom..." I eyed him, chewing on my lower lip while my brain calculated the trip.“I will let them know it's work-related…for real it is," he said, closing the distance between us to drag me flush against his chest. "I have a foreign conference on Saturday, and there's a business with an important investor I want to seal. You're coming with me for the conference, then you can actually put the skills you have been learning from the legal department to use. I will need you to draft the contract for the investment."He pressed a lingering kiss to my forehead. I rustled against the tangled sheets, noticing the rain had stopped battering my window, I watched him with pure adoration. How did I even manage to capture the attention of
~Isabel~"Don't worry about that," he cuts me off, his voice fierce. "Just stick to me, focus on me, I will handle them, trust me, okay?"I watched him for a moment then nodded, shit I know hell will break loose if this gets out, Arthur won't take it lightly finding out he was tricked by his own son. My stupid heart has trapped me here, rendering me unable to call him off despite the danger, and the stress could shatter his dad's unstable health."Your dad…" I started to say,"Shhhhhhsh," he cuts me off then leaned in to kiss me, erasing any remaining distance between us.As soon as his soft lips met mine, thunder cracked angrily outside and the rain which was subsiding poured down more, rattling the windows and hitting against the building. I moaned into his soft slow kiss…as his hot tongue twirled slowly in my mouth playing with my tongue, dominant and demanding.He tilted my head to the side, gripped my neck with his hand that was previously tilting my chin to his gaze, while hi
~Isabel~I followed Juliana down the long, bright hallways of the executive wing. The air here felt different, colder, and more expensive. Every few feet, we passed another row of glass offices where people in tailored suits paused their conversations to watch us walk by. I could feel their eyes
~Isabel ~The moment our eyes met, I saw the exact second the memory clicked into place for her. It was like watching a slow-motion crash. Her perfectly arched eyebrows climbed toward her hairline, and her mouth thinned into a hard, pink line.What was the name Willam called her then? Julie? Juli
~Isabel~The dining room felt too big that night, William didn’t come down for dinner, leaving a space at the table that made me very uncomfortable. We were almost done eating in a quiet atmosphere when Arthur finally cleared his throat ending the silence."Isabel, I hope you enjoyed the shopping
~Isabel ~“You should leave.”The words felt like a lie the moment they left my mouth, they were thin and shaky, lacking any real conviction. The risk was too much, at any moment, my mother could decide she hadn't said enough about the gala or a maid could knock calling me down for dinner, the man







