by J. J. Bella
He looked at her again, then his phone buzzed in his pocket. He would never think of answering it, but the vibrating pattern was Joe’s, and he would never call now unless it was important.
“Ugg,” he said, taking out his phone. “I’m so sorry. It’s Joe.” She would know what that meant.
“Go ahead and take it. I’m going to use the restroom anyway.”
She smiled at him and walked away. His heart sank. He’d blown it.
“Hey Joe, what’s going on?” Lucas walked a few steps farther from the party to hear better.
“So sorry to call you, but I needed a decision on this fast.”
“That’s okay. Go ahead.”
“The Spencer deal. Another company is moving in. I had our… sources… look into it and they found out what they’re offering them.”
“Sources” was their way of discussing the somewhat unethical means they sometimes had to go to in order to get information on business deals. Sometimes it was barely ethical, other times, it was downright illegal what they did. But business was business, and sometimes, ruthless moves were the only option.
“Then up ours. Whatever it takes.”
“That’s what I thought you’d say. That’s all I needed to know.”
He put his phone back in his pocket. It was just enough of a reminder, though. Isabella was sweet and pure. A good person through and through. She wouldn’t be happy about some of his business practices, and he wouldn’t want to put her in a position to be affected by anything he might do. The people he did business with weren’t always upstanding citizens. He couldn’t drag her into his world, no matter how badly he wanted her.
She would make his life better by far. But he could do nothing to improve her life, aside from provide her with a wealthy lifestyle, but she was never interested in his billionaire status. She didn’t need money like he did. She was happy and perfect without it. And by bringing her in, he’d ruin that. He’d corrupt her. And he never wanted her to change.
3
Isabella stared into her own eyes in the mirror. She took several deep breaths. Okay, she thought, I can do this. Just say the words. It’s not that hard. She let out a sigh and looked down. It was hard. And this was why she’d avoided it for so.
Just being with Lucas had her unnerved. They’d never been able to spend time alone together and this wedding was the perfect excuse. Now that they were there, it was everything she’d imagined it would be. Being with him was easy. Nothing like being Matthew. Matthew had required so much thinking all the time. If she didn’t form her words just right and talk to him in a certain way, he’d get frustrated or offended. If she didn’t try to read his mind, he accused her of not knowing him. Lucas was nothing like that. She could talk freely, without thinking about every word first. She could just be herself.
She didn’t even know how she’d managed to be with Matthew as long as she had. Two years had passed without her noticing much. She had agreed to marry him, but it was likely more for the convenience, or the belief that it was just the next step. When months had passed with no real wedding plans taking place, people started to question what was going on. When she’d sat down and pictured her perfect day, Lucas kept popping up.
She looked at tuxes, imagining what Lucas would look like in long tails. When she tried to pick out music, she found herself picking songs she knew Lucas liked. Even the location, she remembered thinking that Lucas would love it. And that was the point when she had to stop. She couldn’t marry Matthew. She wasn’t in love with him. She was in love with Lucas. And had been for as long as she could remember.
In the moments when she was being brutally honest with herself, she had feelings for him even when Abigail was still alive. Of course, she’d never told anyone or acted on them in any way and never would dream of it. But she’d watched them with a secret jealousy in her heart. When Abigail died, it seemed that her death was the thing that would bring them together. And her being gone meant that she could never be with him. Because it would still feel like stealing him away. It would disrupt the memory of her sister, and she couldn’t bear that.
But as the years passed and she was with Matthew, that thought started to fade. It had been so many years now. Abigail was still alive in their minds and hearts, but Jackson was here, growing up, and he needed a mother. Lucas couldn’t stay single forever. And he wouldn’t. How long could a gorgeous billionaire in his late twenties really avoid being in a relationship? She’d started to feel like time was running out.
Then, tonight, when he’d asked her about what would happen if he started seeing someone, she almost lost it. She thought her chance passed. She imagined being alone forever, watching him get married again, this time to some stranger, and she panicked. She had to tell him. And she had to do it now.
So why couldn’t she? Why was it so difficult? She could tell him anything. Except this. Maybe she was kidding herself, or reading too much into things, but she’d thought for a moment, that he was going to kiss her. The inches between them had felt on fire and her heart raced. They moved closer, like two boats drifting near each other about to crash, but then he’d looked away. And then he’d gotten the call and the spell had been broken.
That’s what was bothering her now. Had she imagined it, or had he really planned to kiss her? Because that would mean he had feelings for her, too, and the reality of that, of all her dreams coming true, was overwhelming. To think, this thing she’d wanted so long was about to happen. All she had to do now was leave this bathroom, find him, tell him.
She took in another breath and set a determined expression on her face. “You can do this.”
She left the bathroom and found him in the same place she’d left him. He was finished his call and stood looking out over the garden.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Yes, Sorry about that. It was something that had to be taken care of immediately.”
“I understand.” She stood beside him and looked at him.
He pressed his lips together in a flat smile, and looked away again.
Whatever had been there before was gone now. It felt like the wrongest time ever to tell him. What had changed?
She wondered what Jackson and her parents were up to. Her mind drifted again, to what it’d be like to be a family and be not only Jackson’s aunt, but also his step mother. Caring for her sister’s child like he was her own. She did that now, but only being with him during the day when Lucas was working limited their time together. She didn’t often tuck him in at night, she wasn’t there if he had a nightmare.
But there was one thing she never allowed herself to think of. What if she did date Lucas? What if she dated him and it didn’t work? Before Abigail, he’d told her, he’d dated lots of women. He’d been picky and even Abigail said he could be a lot to take sometimes. High maintenance was usually the phrase.
They got along great now, as friends and family, but what if they didn’t make good lovers? What if they broke up? Then what would come of her time with Jackson? Would he still want her around to watch him if she were his ex? And to have that added time with Jackson, then to lose it. Maybe she was better off just keeping things as they were. It was a big risk to take. Lucas could end up being the love of her life. Or he could be her biggest regret.
She looked over at him. He met her eyes briefly, then looked away again. No. She couldn’t risk it. If she couldn’t be sure he even had feelings for her, she couldn’t risk making things awkward between them and possibly losing Jackson. Maybe one day the time would come. But not today.
4
Lucas looked over at her one last time. She was so beautiful tonight, he wanted this moment to last forever. But it couldn’t.
“I was thinking,” he said. “When I pick Jackson up in the morning, why don’t you come stay with me until you find a new place to live? It can’t be great sleeping in a car-themed room.”
“Oh, it’s not so bad. I don’t want to inconvenience you or anything.”
He almost held his breath waiting for her answer. He had to do something to be close to her. Even if they couldn’t be together, maybe she’d just end up staying there with him for a long time. At least that way, he could pretend.
“I think Jackson would love having you around more, too,” he added. “Starting kindergarten is a big deal. He’ll need more help than he did before.”
She nodded slowly. “If you’re sure I won’t get in your way. I could stay for a little while. To help Jackson and everything.”
“Great.” He pushed his excitement down. He could do cartwheels though. “Then tomorrow? We’ll go to your old place and get your things.”
“Yeah. I do have a lot over there that I need, and I’d feel much better if you were there than if I went alone.”
“Tomorrow then.” He took her hand and kissed it, then bowed. “Thank you for a lovely evening, my lady.”
She chuckled. “Thank you for coming. I know it was last minute.”
“No problem.” He would have moved anything he had planned to spend the evening with her, if that’s what it required.
The next morning, he dressed in jeans and an old t-shirt, then headed over to pick up Isabella. The plan was to move a bunch of things with his pickup truck, then get Jackson and her things from her parents when they were done. Jackson and his grandparents would go out to breakfast and spend the morning at the zoo—one of Jackson’s favorite places to be.
Isabella wore a similar outfit, except her jeans hugged her curves, and her t-shirt stretched tight across her chest. With her hair up in a ponytail, she looked just as beautiful as she had the night before. She came to the front door and handed him a metal travel mug.
“Coffee. Thought we might need it.” She sipped her own mug and gave him a quick hug. “Thanks for doing this.”
“Anything I can do to help you out.”
He opened the door for her and once she was in, they drove over to the house she’d shared with Matthew.
“I told him I was coming,” she said. “And asked him not to be there. We’ll see.”
“I’m not worried about it.” He was carrying today, as he usually did, and this punk Matthew was nothing he couldn’t handle if he had to.
When they arrived, Matthew’s car was not in the driveway.
“Looks like he’s not here,” Isabella said.
For an hour, they loaded up the truck, working together to put her things into boxes and then into the truck. They carried out bigger items together, him walking backward, watching her between glances behind him to make sure he didn’t run into anything.
They made one trip over to his house, unloaded everything, and headed back for another trip. They made the next trip even faster, and returned for their third and final trip. As the truck neared fullness, a car pulled into the driveway.
Matthew got out of the passenger seat. He stumbled and glared over at them.
“Well, look who’s here,” Matthew said. He slurred his words and stumbled toward them.
Lucas shook his head. What a loser to be drunk like that at 11 in the morning. No wonder she didn’t love him.
“I asked you not to be here,” Isabella said, crossing her arms.
Lucas moved closer to Isabella. He’d jump in if he thought Matthew was going to do something stupid.
The car that dropped him off backed out and Matthew held up a hand to wave as they sped off down the road. Great. So he was staying then.
“Just go somewhere,” Isabella said. “We’re almost done.”
“Oh right,” he said. “I almost forgot you’re taking everything from me today. What of mine do you have in there?”
He walked over to the back of the truck and picked up a photo frame. “I’ll take this back, you thieving bitch.”
“You gave that to me as a gift,” she said.
“Right. I bought it, so it’s mine.”
“Fine. I don’t want something you gave me anyway.”
“You wanted it just fine every time I gave it to you.” He grabbed himself and made a lewd face at her.
That was too much for Lucas. He stepped closer to Matthew. “That sort of talk is not appropriate. You will show her respect, and you will stay out of our way so we can finish what we need to do here. Then, you can stay out of her life forever.”
Matthew held up his hands and laughed. “Oh sorry. I didn’t know your new boyfriend was going to be like that.”
Lucas clenched his teeth together.
“He’s not,” Isabella said. “You know that. You’re just drunk.”
“See what you do to me?” Matthew said. “You make me drink all the time now.”
“I haven’t done that to you, you’re doing it to yourself,” she said.
“Maybe if you had better control of yourself,” Lucas said, “she wouldn’t have been so eager to get rid of you.”
Matthew glared up at Lucas. “Fuck off, man,” he said, and almost fell. The frame slipped from his hands and fell to the cement driveway. The glass shattered and the frame broke in two. An old photo of Isabella and Matthew lay under the broken glass.
“Look what you made me do,” he said to Isabella. “You’ve ruined everything!”
Matthew stepped toward her in a sort of lunging motion. He was too drunk to be accurate in any movement, so he tripped and fell, putting his palms into the pieces of glass when he landed.
“Isabella, why don’t you go inside and see if there’s anything else that needs to be boxed up,” Lucas said.
She looked at Matthew, trying to push himself up in the glass, then to Lucas, and nodded. She turned and Lucas watched until she was inside. Then, he yanked Matthew up by his shirt.
“Listen to me, you drunk piece of shit,” Lucas hissed in his ear. “Stay away from Isabella. That means you don’t call her, you don’t text her, you don’t come around, you don’t contact her in any way. Do you understand?”
Matthew’s head hung heavy, and he was barely standing. “I don’t have to listen to you.”
Lucas took out his phone and sent a text to his assistant. “Joe. I need someone to come pick up a problem for me. Isabella’s old place. Come armed.”
Joe responded quickly. “Be there ASAP.”
This was why Lucas loved having Joe as his assistant. The man always acted fast, doing what needed to be done. And this was why Lucas paid him so well.
“Now, let’s try this again,” Lucas said. He put his hand on Matthew’s shoulder and gripped hard. Matthew leaned away from the pain, but still managed to remain upright. “You will not contact her in any way. Do you understand?”
Matthew glared at him, and tried to spit at him, but missed. He wiped his mouth and took a wobbly step. His fist flew up and connected with Lucas’s chin. He hadn’t hit hard. He was too drunk for that. But this was exactly what Lucas needed. The first punch.
He shoved Matthew to the ground, leaned over him, and clocked him hard in the face. He heard a snap at his nose, then blood poured to the ground. He punched him in the jaw, and again across the face.
Matthew wasn’t trying to get up. He was half curled into a ball on his side.
Lucas bent down and said in his ear, “If you contact her again in any way, I will make this beating look like a walk in the park.”
Matthew had some bravery in his drunkenness. Lucas could hardly believe that he didn’t just lie there. But he reached out and grabbed Lucas’s leg, pulling like he was trying to knock him over.
Lucas punched him the stomach twice. Matthew grabbed his stomach and wheezed. Just to be sure there was no confusion, Lucas kicked him in the ribs, then the back, then, because he couldn’t stand thinking that this man had claimed to love Isabella when he’d just stood there talking to her that way, he kicked him in the chin.
Matt
hew stopped moving around the time Joe pulled up in a car. Another man got out with Joe and they came over to Lucas.
“Is he dead?” Joe asked.
“Knocked out,” Lucas said. “And drunk. Take him somewhere to sleep it off and make sure he doesn’t leave until I give you word.”
Joe nodded and the two of them picked up Matthew’s unconscious body, loaded him into the car, then drove off. Lucas looked at the blood on the driveway, mixed in with the broken frame and shards of glass, and felt satisfied. Hopefully Matthew would learn his lesson, and he’d never bother Isabella again.
5
Isabella watched out the window in horror. She’d always known Lucas was tough. The bad boy type, some people called him. But Abigail had told her over and over, especially when they first started dating, that he wasn’t like that. He wasn’t violent. She promised he wasn’t dangerous.
But what Isabella had just seen made everything Abigail told her a lie. He’d hit Matthew hard enough to make him bleed. And not just a little blood. His shirt was covered and there was a small puddle on the driveway. She could see the bright red staining the tan cement from the kitchen. He had stopped moving, then people came to take him. At first, she thought he’d killed him, the way he kept kicking him. But then she saw Matthew stir a little as they carried him to the car.
Part of her was grateful. Lucas had done this because of her. For her. Matthew had mistreated her, and Lucas stepped in and put an end to it. He’d protected her. And she had seen Matthew hit him first. It wasn’t like Lucas made the first move against a man too drunk to defend himself. Matthew had hit him and Lucas defended himself and her. But maybe a little too well.
He could have dropped Matthew with one punch and left it at that. But even when he was down, Lucas kept hitting him, then started kicking him. It seemed wrong to her. It seemed full of anger and hatred. It seemed far too violent.
