CURIOSITY IS A DANGEROUS THING
1335 Words
Chapter 3
Bella did not breathe properly again until the ballroom doors closed behind her.
The cool night air hit her skin almost instantly as she stepped outside the Grand Meridian Hotel, heels clicking softly against the marble entrance. Her chest still felt tight from embarrassment, irritation, and the overwhelming awareness that she had just made a complete fool of herself in front of one of the most powerful men in the city.
Clara walked beside her in stunned silence for approximately five seconds.
Then—
“Oh my God.”
Bella groaned immediately. “Please don’t start.”
“You argued with Michael Vale.”
“I did not argue with him.”
“You practically challenged him emotionally in 4K resolution.”
Bella rubbed her forehead tiredly. “Clara.”
“No, Bella, do you understand what just happened in there?” Clara stopped dramatically near the valet area and stared at her. “People are terrified of that man. TERRIFIED. One investor once lost a contract because he interrupted Michael during a meeting.”
Bella blinked. “That sounds illegal.”
“That’s because rich people function differently.”
Despite herself, Bella laughed softly.
The tension in her chest eased a little.
A driver pulled up nearby while hotel staff moved around quietly beneath the glow of the entrance lights. Expensive cars arrived one after another, each more luxurious than the last.
Bella suddenly looked down at herself and sighed.
“What?”
“I shouldn’t have come here.”
Clara’s expression softened slightly. “Don’t say that.”
“I embarrassed myself.”
“You spilled wine. You didn’t commit murder.”
Bella muttered something under her breath.
Clara moved closer. “Bella, listen to me carefully. You walked into a room full of people with money, status, and inflated egos, and somehow you were still one of the most memorable people there tonight.”
“That is not comforting.”
“It should be.”
Bella leaned against the railing quietly, exhaustion creeping back into her body now that the adrenaline was fading. She hated the lingering embarrassment sitting heavily in her stomach.
Michael Vale’s face kept replaying in her mind.
That cold expression.
Those sharp eyes.
The way he had looked at her as though trying to figure something out.
It irritated her more than it should have.
“You’re thinking about him,” Clara accused immediately.
Bella nearly choked. “What? No.”
“Bella.”
“I’m thinking about the fact that I may never recover from that humiliation.”
Clara smirked knowingly but decided not to push further.
For now.
Bella glanced toward the ballroom entrance again before shaking her head. “I just want to go home.”
“And continue stressing over bills at two in the morning?”
Bella gave her a look.
“Right,” Clara sighed. “Sensitive topic.”
Before Bella could reply, her phone vibrated inside her purse.
Anna.
Bella answered immediately. “Hey, are you both asleep already?”
“No,” Anna replied. “Joanna is forcing me to watch some terrible dating show.”
“I heard that!” Joanna shouted from the background.
Bella smiled despite herself.
The tightness inside her chest loosened a little more.
“How’s the event?” Anna asked.
Bella exchanged a brief glance with Clara.
“Eventful,” Clara answered loudly before Bella could stop her.
“Clara’s there?” Joanna asked suspiciously.
“Unfortunately,” Bella muttered.
Clara gasped dramatically.
Anna laughed softly through the phone. “You sound better.”
Bella leaned quietly against the railing again. “I’m fine.”
There was a short pause.
Then Anna spoke more gently this time.
“You don’t always have to pretend with us, Bella.”
The words hit harder than expected.
Bella swallowed slowly.
Sometimes she forgot how much the twins noticed despite how carefully she hid things.
“I know,” she murmured softly.
A comfortable silence followed before Joanna suddenly spoke again.
“Did you meet a rich handsome man yet?”
Bella nearly rolled her eyes. “Goodnight, Joanna.”
The twins burst into laughter before the call ended.
Bella slipped her phone back into her purse with a quiet sigh.
“You really love them,” Clara said softly.
Bella looked toward the city lights ahead of them. “They’re all I have.”
Clara’s expression softened completely this time.
Before she could respond, movement near the entrance caught Bella’s attention.
Several men in dark suits stepped outside first.
Security.
Then Michael Vale emerged from the hotel.
Bella instinctively straightened.
Even from a distance, he carried himself differently from everyone else around him.
Calm.
Controlled.
Effortlessly intimidating.
Conversations nearby lowered almost immediately as people noticed him passing.
Michael barely acknowledged any of them.
One of his assistants walked beside him speaking quietly about something on a tablet, but Michael’s attention shifted suddenly.
Toward Bella.
Their eyes met again.
And once more, Bella felt that strange tension she could not explain.
Not attraction.
Definitely not attraction.
Just… awareness.
Like standing too close to something dangerous.
Clara noticed immediately.
“Oh no,” she whispered dramatically. “He sees us.”
Bella elbowed her lightly. “Stop being weird.”
Michael approached calmly, his expression unreadable beneath the glow of the hotel lights. He had changed jackets, but the sharpness in his appearance remained untouched.
Expensive.
Powerful.
Untouchable.
Bella silently hated how unfairly attractive he was.
“Ms. Hart.”
His deep voice caught her slightly off guard.
Bella blinked once before answering carefully. “Mr. Vale.”
Clara looked moments away from fainting.
Michael’s gaze rested briefly on Bella before shifting toward Clara.
“You’re her friend.”
Clara straightened immediately. “Yes.”
Michael nodded once. “You should keep a closer eye on her around wine glasses.”
Bella stared at him in disbelief.
Clara burst out laughing.
Actually laughing.
Bella narrowed her eyes. “You’re enjoying this far too much.”
Something unreadable flickered briefly in Michael’s expression again.
Not quite amusement.
But close.
“I don’t enjoy carelessness,” he replied smoothly.
Bella folded her arms. “Then maybe you should stop standing in people’s way.”
Clara inhaled sharply beside her.
The assistant standing behind Michael suddenly looked terrified.
But to Bella’s surprise, Michael didn’t seem offended this time.
If anything, he looked… interested.
Dangerously interested.
“You always argue this confidently?” he asked.
Bella lifted a brow. “Only when necessary.”
For the first time since meeting him, the faintest trace of amusement touched his face properly.
Small.
Brief.
But real.
And somehow that expression transformed him completely.
Bella hated noticing that too.
A sleek black car pulled forward beside them.
Michael’s driver stepped out immediately and opened the rear door.
His assistant moved closer. “Sir, your father called again.”
The slight shift in Michael’s expression returned instantly at those words.
Cold again.
Whatever softness had appeared vanished completely.
“I’m leaving,” he said shortly.
The assistant nodded.
Michael looked back toward Bella one final time.
“Try not to assault anyone else with alcohol tonight, Ms. Hart.”
Bella stared at him. “That joke was terrible.”
Clara covered her mouth to stop another laugh.
And unexpectedly—
Michael’s eyes darkened slightly with what looked suspiciously like restrained amusement.
Then, without another word, he entered the car.
Bella watched silently as the vehicle disappeared into the night.
Only after it was gone did Clara slowly turn toward her.
“…He flirted with you.”
Bella blinked. “No, he didn’t.”
“Bella.”
“He insulted me politely.”
“That man looked at you like he wanted to figure you out.”
Bella shook her head immediately. “You’re imagining things.”
But deep down, something about the encounter unsettled her.
Because for the first time in a very long time…
Someone had looked at her like she was worth noticing.
- Writer
