Chapter 24
No matter how fast I tried to move, he was always faster. His calloused hand wrapped around my arm, bringing my back colliding with the pillar behind me.
Seriously, what does he want?
“Wait,” he whispered as he inched his face closer to mine, a mix of his heady cologne and leather filling my nostrils.
“What do you want from me, Arturo?” I snapped.
“You’re making this so fuckin’ hard for me, Bella,” he rested his forehead against my own, as he let out a steady breath. Rage boiled low in my stomach.
“You’re doing that to yourself,” I shoved his body away, making pain flash through those hazel eyes.
“Look, there is so much I can’t tell you, okay? It’s… stuff I need to deal with alone, and I can’t drag you down with me,” he sighed. What the hell was he talking about?
“Then tell me,” I begged, grabbing his biceps.
“I can’t.. You don’t deserve my shit corruptin’ your life like it has mine.” His eyes filled with sorrow as he smoothed his fingers down my cheekbone, leaving a trail of heat in their wake.
“Stop treating me like I wouldn’t understand. I’m not some innocent little girl, Arturo, who doesn’t know how the world works. I’ve grown up in a life that’s anything but pure and good. You don’t get to decide what I deserve to know.” He groaned as though in pain.
“Bella, you are so much more than I—” he stopped himself and glanced down, heaving in a breath. “I’d never forgive myself if somethin’ happened to you because I took my eye off the ball,” he whispered.
I inched closer to him, our lips so close I could taste his minty breath. “Please, whatever it is, just tell me.”
And just like that we were back in his room, all hot, sweaty tangled bodies beneath his sheets.
I could feel his hands gripping my thighs.
His tongue running across my skin. His name on my lips as he wrung wave after wave of pleasure from me.
I wet my lips as he looked down at me. The heat from his chest made my nipples tighten.
Without another word he reached up to gently take my hands that were gripping his biceps and pulled them down. “You should get back inside.” I blinked at his voice which had returned to its flat, emotionless state and felt myself crash back down to earth.
My head began to spin. Blinking away tears, I picked up my dress and ran for the door.
I tried not to wince at the pumps pinching my heels and took a big gasping breath as I stumbled back into the sweltering building.
Sounds from the ballroom were muffled beneath the pounding of my heart in my ears.
Leaning back against a wall next to the main room, I placed a hand on my chest and stared up at the ceiling, begging myself not to cry.
“There you are!” Oh shit. I cleared my throat and quickly ran a thumb under each eye to get rid of the few tears that had dropped before putting a big smile on my face.
“Henry, hi!”
“I’ve been looking for you.” With a smile he reached for my hand. I couldn’t help but wince as his slightly moist palm took mine, dulling the warmth Arturo had left from his own grip.
“Well, you found me.”
He chuckled, obviously unsure on how to respond to that. As we walked, he started blabbering on about something—completely oblivious to the fact I’d all but switched off.
“Henry, I apologise, but I need to go,” I said, my eyes scanning the room for a ride home.
“Oh! But it’s so early, and this is your party after all,” he frowned.
“I know, but, it’s been a long day,” I smiled. “ I look forward to seeing you this Friday though.” I wasn’t. But he didn’t need to know that. To my relief, he nodded before placing a soft kiss on my knuckles.
“Until Friday then, Isabella.” I nodded at him before pulling my hand away and heading towards the exit. There had to be one of my security detail around who’d drive me home.
I needed to be alone.
Luckily a few of Arturo’s guys were on a cigarette break and offered to escort me home and inform my father of my departure. I didn’t speak a word the entire journey, and thankfully the guy didn’t seem the chatty sort.
The house was empty and eerie when I arrived home. Not that I minded. I quite liked it that way. It was peaceful. Besides, the usual guards were surrounding the perimeter so I knew I was safe alone.
After locking my door, and changing into something a little more comfortable than my sequin covered dress, I lay back on my bed and stared at the ceiling.
Knowing I had nobody to talk to was hard but it was how I dealt with everything.
It’s not like I could talk to my mother about all this.
Arturo was my father’s employee. It was forbidden for god’s sake.
If anything happened between us, my father would have Arturo killed for sure. So what the hell was I doing?
“It’s not a choice, B. I couldn’t have stopped myself loving Luca any more than I could’ve stopped the sun from rising.”
I huffed as Peyton’s words from the day I discovered Luca and her were together floated through me.
They’d fallen in love gradually over the years but the day I saw them together everything clicked into place.
Where Luca was practical and easygoing, Peyton was passion personified. They made complete sense.
I winced as memory after memory floated past me.
That moment Luca fell out of her hospital room would stay with me forever.
The sounds of his howls penetrated the walls so deeply even the nurses panicked.
Watching my twin lose the love of his life and my best friend destroyed any hope I had of ever believing it could happen.
The pain nearly destroyed him. I promised myself I wouldn’t do that to myself. I couldn’t.
So why did I feel this way?
I pulled my hands away from my eyes and stared out at the night sky. My mind began to replay the evening, stuck on a loop as I stomped out onto the terrace. The feel of his hands on mine. The smell of his skin. There was something about Arturo. I’d never known anyone to make me feel so alive.
Maybe these feelings were wrong, or even a little naive, but regardless it didn’t matter now. He didn’t want me anymore, and I had to accept that.
I had no choice.
“You ready?” Arturo asked as I came into view on the staircase.
It was Friday and I wasn’t exactly thrilled about it.
I was dreading my date with Henry, but if it made me forget about him for at least a moment, maybe it would be worth it.
Smiling, I pulled back my shoulders and carried on down the stairs.
“Do you always wait around for me to appear?” I teased as I reached him, walking with these heels was becoming slightly easier each time.
“I don’t know what you mean.” He fished the keys out of his pocket, his face impassive. It was clear he wanted to be here just as much as I did.
Was I ecstatic about this date?
Of course I wasn’t. But the thought of pissing all over the alliance my father had worked so hard to build with the French family was not a pleasant one.
“You ready then?” He asked again, waiting for my reply.
No, I wasn’t ready. But this was my best first step to getting over the brief feelings Arturo and I had shared.
Did I only say yes to Henry to piss off Arturo?
Most probably.
Was that wrong of me?
Of course.
Was it too late to turn back time now and refuse his offer?
Abso-fucking-lutely.
“Yes, I’m ready,” I smiled half heartedly, hoping the journey there would be painless. If I was honest with myself, I kept daydreaming he would stop the car and forbid me from going before finally admitting his feelings for me.
That wasn’t going to happen.
“Right, let’s go then, don’t want to keep Harry waitin’, do ya?” He scoffed as he strode off towards the garage.
“Arturo—” I started, merely a whisper.
“After you. You don’t want to be late. ” He said while opening the door.
I didn’t want Henry… I wanted you.
The journey to the restaurant was silent. He barely spoke a word, and the ones he did were to one of the team over the speaker regarding a matter I shut myself off to.
“Arturo…”
“Isabella?” he replied, his tone soft and inviting—something it hadn’t been for a while.
“Do you want me to go on this date?” I asked, praying his answer would be the one I wanted to hear.
“Ain’t up to me, darlin’. Lady’s choice.” He kept his eyes trained on the road.
Taking a breath, I took a risk and decided to lay it all out on the table.“Tell me not to go and I won’t…” I closed my eyes as I waited for his reaction. Would he turn the car around, or just stop it and kiss me? After a full sixty Mississippi’s I opened my eyes to see him calmly staring ahead.
Seriously?
The last flame of hope I had finally gone out. Settling into my seat, I allowed the hurt to cool my veins and any feelings I still had for Arturo fucking Ramos died right there and then.
This was why I never let people in.
It was high time I remembered that.