Chapter 15
“Isabella?”
“Go away,” I groaned at the familiar voice behind my bedroom door. I looked and felt like shit. I didn’t need to see him right now.
The door opened to reveal Arturo, wearing grey sweats that hugged his thighs, a fitted black t-shirt, his usual leather jacket and sneakers. I pulled the covers over my head to prevent him seeing me. My hair was a mess and my eyes were bloodshot. This was a new level of humiliation.
“Go away.” This man and his zero boundaries. He was becoming a pain in my ass.
“Can’t. Sorry. Soup’s goin’ cold.” I could tell he was smiling, but it wasn’t his usual cocky smile, it was a worrisome one.
“I’m not hungry.” The thought of eating something there and then was quickly making me want to hurl.
“Please, just try some. If you do, I’ll leave you alone,” I felt the bed dip as he lowered himself onto it.
He pulled the covers back, I already knew my face was pale and my lips were dry and cracking, but he didn’t seem to care.
As he helped me to sit up, his eyes roamed over my face, as he supported my weight.
“It’ll be the last thing you want, Isabella, you need to try and eat something. ”
“Arturo,” I pulled my face away. “This isn’t your job.”
“I’m doing this because I’m worried about you. And it’s got fuck all to do with my job.” He peeled the lid off the soup he’d brought. I noticed it had a label from somewhere in town.
He’d bought that for me?
“You didn’t need to do that,” I breathed out, feeling a wave of nausea pass through me.
“Isabella, for once, stop being so bloody stubborn and let me do this for you,” he huffed carefully, bringing a soup-filled spoon to my lips. Surprisingly, I let him feed me. I didn’t want to, but right now I was too weak to argue. “Good girl, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“Can we do this silently?”
“As you wish.”
The flavour was pleasant and it did ease some of my nausea. Arturo continued to feed me until I couldn’t stomach anymore. He placed the tub on the bedside table before turning back to face me.
“Better?” He asked, tucking a stray hair behind my ear.
“A little, thank you,” I smiled as best I could, but it only tugged at the corners of my mouth.
“No training tomorrow, just rest.” He laid me back down, pulling the covers up to my chin. “Need anything else?”
“No. Thank you.”
He cupped my chin, the action bringing my gaze to his. “Don’t ever thank me for worrying about you, Hermosa ,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to my damp forehead.
I was unsure what to feel. I didn’t know if it was because I was sick and not feeling myself but his gesture made something in my belly flutter. I wanted to hate him and his damn attitude but something inside me couldn’t. I didn’t want to give into him, I couldn’t. I couldn’t allow myself to.
“Goodnight, Arturo.”
“Goodnight, Bella.”
He rose from the bed, I expected him to look back as he left but he didn’t. He slipped out the door, closing it quietly.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Did I want him?
No, no I didn’t.
Nothing could happen there.
Aside from everything… my father would kill him, no questions asked.
“Good morning, darling, how are you feeling?” I entered the lounge to see my mother watching a movie alone. I still felt unsteady, but I couldn’t spend the day in bed, no matter how much I wanted to.
“Not great, but I just needed to get out of bed.”
“Well, I’ve just put on Mamma Mia, sit down with me,” she said, patting the sofa.
As I flopped onto it, she pulled me into her embrace. Her floral perfume filled my nostrils while she stroked her hand over my hair, gently placing my head on her lap.
“I don’t want you training today, okay?”
“I won’t. Arturo told me to take the day off,” I sighed. I couldn’t deny the guilt that flooded through me.
“Oh? When did you see him? He’s been out with your father since the early hours,” she said pointedly.
“When he brought me some soup last night.”
“So that’s where he went after dinner, he said he forgot to pick something up.
” In my haggard state I could have sworn I heard intrigue in her voice.
But our family had strict rules when it came to who I could and couldn’t date.
Especially now I had agreed to take over from my father.
That and she knew better than anyone not to get excited over me and a guy.
“It’s no big deal! He just felt guilty about pushing me so hard in the gym. That’s all.” I didn’t know who I was trying to convince, myself or my mother.
“Isabella—”
“Mama, I know what you’re going to say, but I swear to you, that’s all that it was.” I sat up to face her, my sunken eyes meeting her dubious ones. “Besides, I don’t see myself ever finding anyone. I need to do this alone?—”
“What you need to do is to relax. This is a major change for you, and not one you wanted. Your Papa knows that. You need to trust that he will go at your pace.”
“As long as it’s not snail pace,” I huffed.
“Isabella, your father doesn’t want to lead forever. He wants to pass everything to you and see you flourish. He wants the world and more for you,” she squeezed my hand in hers, her ring catching the sunlight.
“I get that.” Just as I settled back down, she spoke again.
“Bella sweetheart, you’ve always put family before your own interests—even going as far as to accept a position you didn’t want. I just want you to promise me that when you find what it is you’ve been looking for, you’ll trust your instincts.”
I frowned at this. My mama and I rarely had heart-to-hearts but this felt different. What was she trying to tell me? I sighed and rubbed my throbbing forehead. “Yeah, okay, Mama, I promise I’ll try.”
“Good. Now, are you coming with me to Andre’s football game tomorrow?”
I sat back up and rubbed my eyes. “Of course, I promised him I would?—.”
“Too right you did,” I gripped my head as Andre came strolling into the lounge. “Everyone’s coming,”
“Andre, do you have to be so freaking loud— Wait, did you just say everyone?”
“Yeah,” he kicked his feet up on the coffee table, rewarding him with a tut of annoyance from our mother. “Sorry, Mama,” he laughed as he was met by an eye roll.
Shit… Everyone really meant everyone.
Which meant a whole afternoon with Arturo watching me. I rubbed my arms as goosebumps broke out and dropped my head back onto my mother’s lap.
The rest of the morning was spent in front of the TV with my brother and Mama, and for a moment I seemed to forget about everything that was going on in my life. But like I said, only for a moment.
Loud voices filled the kitchen and drifted into the lounge as my Papa and the guys entered from the garage. I even heard the throaty laugh of Arturo, which sounded like a genuine one.
“Ah, Isabella, you’re up, how are you feeling kiddo?” Red asked as he peered his head through the door.
“A little better, thanks,” I sat upright from Mama’s lap, and for some reason, I searched for him. Maybe it was out of curiosity, or maybe it was something else, but whatever it was, pissed me off.
“Why aren’t you in bed?” I stiffened as the voice floated across to me. “I gave you the day off to rest in bed, not hang around downstairs.” And there he was, gone was the caring man from last night only to be replaced by Satan’s helper.
“She’s been resting, don’t worry,” my mother smiled, all eyes drifted to my father as he entered the room.
“Isabella, Arturo’s right, you should be in bed,” my father smiled. Did he really just side with him? Was he for real?
“Fine, I’m going,” I pulled myself off of the sofa, wobbling as dizziness took over. How fantastic was that? And right in front of everyone.
“You need a hand, Bells?” Luca asked as I walked by him as steadily as possible.
“I wish you’d all stop fussing around me.” I mock punched his chest before continuing towards the stairs. “And would you all quit watching me? Haven’t you all seen a sick person before?”
As I felt the eyes slowly turn away, my body was weaker than I expected and these stairs took the last ounce of energy I had. Even my mind was weak, I didn’t even have the fight to give Arturo a sarcastic comment when he belittled me in front of my family.
Why did he always do that? Just when I started to trust him he’d go and act like a bastard again.
As I neared the top of the stairs, I stumbled.
“Shit!”
I knew my face meeting the floor was inevitable, but what I didn’t know was someone hadn’t taken their eyes off me. Why did I think he would? He never did. His large hands caught me less than a second after I stumbled.
“I told you to stay in bed,” he murmured in my ear, not giving two fucks that my family were only downstairs.
“I—”
“Bella, are you okay?!” My father’s voice floated up to us from the bottom of the stairs before I could finish what I was going to say to Arturo.
“I’m fine, those stairs just took it out of me, that’s all,” I said shakily.
“Let me help you—” he smiled, but before he could take a single step, Arturo scooped me effortlessly into his arms.
“It’s fine. I’ve got her.” My eyes widened at his zero fucks attitude, but I knew he would find a way to wriggle out of any trouble it caused.
“My office once you’re done,” was all my father said, as Arturo strode towards my room, leaving a path of destruction in his wake.
“I can make my own way from here,” that was clearly a lie, and he knew it.
“Funny,” he said, shoving my door open before kicking it closed behind him. “Now stay in bed, got it?” His voice was stern. There was little to no emotion in it at all.
“I couldn’t, I needed?—”
“I don’t give a shit what you needed. Stay in bed, and do as you’re told.” Despite his tone, he placed me down gently.
“I don’t need you to treat me like a damn child.”
“Then don’t fuckin’ act like it!” He hissed and slammed his hand into my vanity, leaving a dent to commemorate the occasion of him being a class A asshole. “How do you expect to get better if you’re gallivanting around the house?”