CHAPTER FOUR: ISABELLA'S TURN TO FALL
1840 Words
Isabella Carter had always been the wild one.
While Sophia studied and followed rules, Isabella broke them. She traveled alone at nineteen. She dated men her mother disapproved of. She drank too much and laughed too loud and lived like tomorrow did not exist.
But beneath all that chaos was a girl who just wanted to be loved.
Her father Richard had abandoned her when she was seven. Her mother was too busy managing her marriages to notice her middle daughter slipping through the cracks. Sophia was the golden child. Lily was the baby. Isabella was just there. Floating. Forgotten.
Until Ethan.
It happened in June.
Sophia had moved back home temporarily while she looked for jobs in the city. She was gone most days at interviews. Margaret was busy planning a charity event. Lily was at summer camp.
Isabella came home early from a trip to Miami. Her boyfriend had dumped her at the airport. Told her he had been cheating the entire time. Left her standing there with her suitcase and a broken heart.
She called her mother but Margaret did not answer. She called Sophia but it went to voicemail. So she drove home alone crying the entire way.
When she walked into the mansion Ethan was the only one there.
He was in his office working on blueprints. He looked up when he heard her come in and immediately saw that something was wrong.
"Isabella? What happened?"
She dropped her bags and the tears came harder. She could not speak. Could not explain. She just stood there falling apart.
Ethan came around his desk and pulled her into a hug.
It was supposed to be comforting. Fatherly. Safe.
But Isabella had not been held in months. Had not felt wanted or cared for. And Ethan smelled good. Felt solid. Made her feel like maybe she mattered.
She pressed her face into his chest and sobbed.
Ethan held her and stroked her hair and said all the right things. "It's okay. You're okay. He's an i***t for letting you go."
Isabella looked up at him with red eyes and a trembling mouth. "Why does everyone leave me?"
"I don't know sweetheart. But it's not because of you. You're incredible."
"I don't feel incredible."
"You are." He wiped a tear from her cheek. "Any man would be lucky to have you."
Isabella felt something shift in her chest. The way he looked at her. The way his thumb lingered on her skin. It was different. More than stepfather concern.
"Do you really think that?" she whispered.
Ethan hesitated. Just for a second. And in that hesitation Isabella saw the truth.
He was attracted to her.
She did not know why she did it. Maybe it was the heartbreak. Maybe it was the need to feel wanted. Maybe it was something darker.
She kissed him.
Ethan went rigid. For a moment he did not move. Did not respond.
Then he kissed her back.
It was wrong and they both knew it.
Ethan pulled away first, breathing hard. "Isabella we can't—"
"Why not?"
"Because I'm married to your mother."
"You don't love her."
He stared at her. "How do you know that?"
"I see the way you look at her. The way you look at everyone." Isabella stepped closer. Her heart was pounding. "You're not happy. Neither am I. So why can't we make each other feel good?"
"This is insane."
"I don't care."
She kissed him again and this time Ethan did not pull away. His hands went to her waist. His mouth opened against hers. And just like that another line was crossed.
They stumbled toward the couch. Clothes were pulled. Boundaries were shattered. It was reckless and desperate and everything Isabella needed.
Afterward she lay against him breathing hard.
"We can't tell anyone," Ethan said. His voice was rough.
"I know."
"Especially not Sophia or your mother."
Isabella nodded. She did not ask why he mentioned Sophia first. She did not want to know.
"This stays between us," Ethan continued. "Do you understand?"
"Yes."
He tilted her chin up and looked at her seriously. "I mean it Isabella. This is dangerous. If anyone finds out—"
"No one will find out." She kissed him softly. "I promise."
Ethan relaxed slightly. He stroked her hair and pulled her closer.
"You're beautiful," he said. "You know that?"
Isabella felt warmth bloom in her chest. No one ever called her beautiful. Sexy. Hot. Wild. But never beautiful.
"Say it again," she whispered.
"You're beautiful."
She closed her eyes and let herself believe it.
The affair became routine quickly.
Whenever Margaret was out Isabella found reasons to be home. She and Ethan would meet in his office. In the pool house. In her bedroom when everyone was asleep.
It was thrilling. Forbidden. Addictive.
Isabella felt wanted for the first time in her life. Ethan made her feel special. Like she was more than just the messy middle daughter. Like she mattered.
She did not think about Sophia. Did not think about her mother. Did not think about the consequences.
She only thought about him.
July came hot and restless.
Sophia was still living at home but she was gone most of the time. Job hunting. Meeting friends. Avoiding the house.
Isabella wondered if Sophia suspected something. Sometimes she caught her older sister watching Ethan with strange intensity. But Sophia never said anything so Isabella pushed the thought away.
One afternoon Margaret announced she was going to a spa weekend with friends. She asked if the girls wanted to come but both Sophia and Isabella declined. Sophia said she had interviews. Isabella said she was tired.
Lily was still at camp.
The house would be empty except for Ethan.
Isabella could barely contain her excitement.
The night Margaret left Isabella put on her best lingerie and went to Ethan's bedroom.
He was waiting for her.
They did not talk. There was no need. They both knew why she was there.
Ethan pulled her onto the bed and kissed her like he was starving. His hands mapped every inch of her skin. Isabella arched into him and let herself get lost.
This was wrong. She knew it. But it felt so right.
Afterward they lay tangled together in the sheets.
"I could get used to this," Isabella said.
Ethan tensed slightly. "Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Don't get attached."
Isabella propped herself up on her elbow and looked at him. "What does that mean?"
"It means this is what it is. Nothing more."
She felt something cold settle in her stomach. "So I'm just... what? A distraction?"
"Isabella—"
"Do you even care about me?"
Ethan sat up and ran a hand through his hair. "Of course I care about you."
"But you don't love me."
He did not answer.
Isabella felt tears sting her eyes. She hated how needy she sounded. Hated that she cared. But she could not help it.
"Is there someone else?" she asked quietly.
Ethan looked at her sharply. "Why would you ask that?"
"I don't know. You just seem... distant sometimes."
"I'm not distant. I'm careful. There's a difference."
"So it's just me then? Just us?"
"Yes." He pulled her back down against him. "It's just us."
Isabella wanted to believe him. She needed to believe him.
But something in his voice felt like a lie.
August arrived with thunderstorms and tension.
Sophia announced she got a job offer in the city and would be moving out in two weeks. Margaret threw a small celebration dinner. Ethan congratulated her with a smile that did not reach his eyes.
Isabella watched them across the table and felt something twist in her gut.
The way Ethan looked at Sophia. The way Sophia looked away. The tension that crackled between them even when they were not speaking.
No.
Isabella pushed the thought away. She was being paranoid. Sophia was her sister. Ethan was hers.
But the doubt planted itself like a seed.
One night Isabella could not sleep.
She got up to get water and heard voices downstairs. Quiet. Whispered. She crept to the top of the stairs and looked down.
Ethan and Sophia stood in the foyer. Close. Too close.
"I'll come see you," Ethan said quietly.
"You can't. It's too risky."
"I don't care. I need to see you."
"Ethan—"
He grabbed Sophia's wrist and pulled her closer. "Don't do this. Don't pull away from me now."
Sophia's voice broke. "This is killing me."
"I know. Me too."
They stood there for a long moment just looking at each other. Then Ethan let her go and Sophia went upstairs.
Isabella pressed herself against the wall as Sophia passed. Her heart was pounding. Her mind was racing.
No. No. No.
This could not be happening.
But the pieces were falling into place. The late night texts Sophia tried to hide. The way she avoided coming home. The way Ethan mentioned her name just a little too often.
They were sleeping together.
Ethan was sleeping with both of them.
Isabella went back to her room and sat on her bed shaking.
She should have been furious. Should have confronted them. Should have told her mother.
But all she felt was hollow.
Because the worst part was not that Ethan was cheating on her with Sophia.
The worst part was that he loved Sophia.
She could see it. The way he looked at her. The desperation in his voice. He felt something for Sophia that he would never feel for Isabella.
Isabella was just the distraction. The second choice. The middle daughter no one really wanted.
Tears ran down her face. She pressed her hands over her mouth to keep from screaming.
She should walk away. She should end this. She should protect herself.
But she did not want to lose him.
Even if he did not love her. Even if she had to share him. Even if it destroyed her.
She would rather have half of Ethan than none of him at all.
The next day Isabella acted like nothing was wrong.
She smiled at breakfast. She laughed at Margaret's stories. She avoided Sophia's eyes.
And when Ethan texted her that afternoon asking her to meet him she said yes.
Because she was in too deep now.
Because walking away would mean admitting she was not enough.
Because loving him had become the only thing that made her feel alive.
Even if that love was killing her.
Isabella lay in Ethan's arms that night and made a decision.
She would not confront him. She would not tell Sophia. She would play the game and play it better.
She would make him choose her.
She would make him love her.
And if she could not have all of him then she would make sure no one else could either.
The second affair was now burning just as hot as the first.
And neither sister knew they were sharing the same man.
But secrets never stay buried forever.
- Writer
