Signed to love

Chapter 17

The next morning arrived far too quickly, Chloe woke up before the alarm.

For a few seconds, she simply stared at the ceiling, trying to remember where she was.

Then the unfamiliar room slowly came back to her, the mansion.

She sighed and sat up.

Something about the previous evening still bothered her, maybe it was the way Mrs Gabriella had looked at her.

It wasn't just an ordinary mother-in-law's disapproval

There was something deliberate about it, something Chloe couldn't quite put her finger on.

She pushed the thought aside, she already had enough things to worry about already.

After getting dressed, Chloe left her room and headed downstairs.

The moment she reached the staircase, she heard voices coming from the living room

One of them belonged to Mrs Gabriella, the other was unfamiliar

Chloe slowed down, she couldn't help herself, she looked toward the living room and froze.

A woman stood beside the large windows with her back turned to her, she looked completely at home

Her long hair fell neatly down her back, and she wore a simple but expensive looking outfit that somehow made her appear even more elegant.

She wasn't trying too hard to impress anyone, she simply had the confidence of someone who already knew she belonged there.

"She's definitely rich" Chloe muttered to herself, Mrs Gabriella noticed Chloe first.

Her eyes immediately sharpened

"Chloe" Chloe immediately straightened

"Good morning, ma"

Mrs Gabriella smiled, but the warmth never reached her eyes

"Come here" Chloe hesitated before walking into the room, the unfamiliar woman slowly turned around.

The moment her eyes landed on Chloe, her expression changed.

That was something Chloe couldn't understand, the woman smiled

"So this is her?"The lady asked almost laughing, Chloe frowned slightly embarrassed by the question.

Mrs Gabriella stood up

"Yes Isabella"

Isabella walked toward Chloe slowly, she stopped directly in front of her and studied her from head to toe.

Chloe shifted uncomfortably

"Good morning"Chloe said forcing a smile to spread across her face.

"Good morning, dear"

There was something strange about the sweetness in her voice, Chloe glanced at Mrs Gabriella

"Have we met before?"

Isabella's smile remained

"No, it's funny how you think you could have ever come across someone like me"

She paused

"But I've heard quite a lot about you, The supposed wife of Amirion"

Chloe's stomach tightened

"From who?"Chloe stuttered.

Before Isabella could answer, Mrs Gabriella stepped forward.

"Young lady, there's no need to interrogate our guest this early in the morning"

Chloe looked at her

"I wasn't interrogating her"

Mrs Gabriella gave her a small smile

"Why don't you go and help the maids with breakfast"

"Okay"Chloe nodded as she turned to leave.

"Chloe" Mrs Gabriella suddenly called her back.

Mrs Gabriella's voice suddenly softened

"Try to make Isabella feel welcome, she is part of the elite people in the society I hope you understand me"

Chloe looked back.

"Of course"She walked away

The moment she disappeared through the doorway, Isabella's smile faded.

"She's younger than I expected"

Mrs Gabriella folded her arms with a dangerous smile across her face

"That's what makes her easy to control"

Isabella looked toward the doorway

"Does Amirion really love and care about her?"

Mrs Gabriella's expression hardened

"That's what I'm still trying to find out but from what I've seen he might actually do"

Isabella gave a quiet laugh.

"Then why don't you ask him to be sure?"

Mrs Gabriella's eyes narrowed.

"Because men rarely tell the truth when they know the truth will hurt them"

Isabella nodded slowly

"You're right"

She walked toward the sofa and sat down

"Tell me everything I need to know"Isabella said as she crossed her legs

Mrs Gabriella followed her, she sat next to her.

"There's not much to tell since I just arrived yesterday"Mrs Gabriella paused

"She came into his life unexpectedly, he says she's only here temporarily, but I've watched him around her...I think she cast a love spell on him"

"Or maybe your son is just head over heels in love with her"Isabella said laughing, Mrs Gabriella's jaw tightened

"He's different but now he's also acting different...he let people who he barely knows stay at his mansion"Mrs Gabriella had a disgusted look on her face as she spoke

"And who are they?And where are they?"

"I sent them to the villa"

Isabella was silent.

For the first time, the confidence in her expression disappeared

"He really did all of that?"

"Yes and he also protects her"

Isabella's eyes narrowed slightly as she listened.

"He worries about how she feels but he doesn't show it too much...maybe he does not want me to realize he is slowly falling in love with her"

"Yesterday, he defended her in front of me"

Isabella's fingers tightened around the handle of her handbag

"Defended her?"Isabella repeated

"Yes"

The room became quiet, Isabella took a slow breath

"So he's already attached"

Mrs Gabriella didn't answer, she didn't need to.

Isabella stood.

"Then we have a problem"

"No"Mrs Gabriella looked at her as she disagreed, a faint smile appeared on her lips.

"We have a challenge"

Isabella stared at her for a moment before smiling again

"That's why I came"

Meanwhile, Chloe was in the kitchen helping prepare breakfast

She tried to concentrate, but her mind kept returning back to Isabella.

It was the way Isabella had looked at her, almost as though Chloe had taken something that belonged to her

A maid placed a plate on the counter

"Are you okay Miss Chloe?"

Chloe blinked.

"Yes"

"You've been staring at the same thing for over five minutes"

Chloe forced a laugh

"Sorry"

The maid smiled softly.

"First time you've seen Mrs Gabriella's friend"

"Yes"

"Isabella"

The maid's expression suddenly changed

"What?"

"Nothing"The maid quickly responded

"No, please tell me"Chloe pleaded

The maid glanced toward the kitchen entrance before lowering her voice.

"Just be careful around her"

Chloe's eyebrows lifted

"Why? Is she bad?"

"I don't know"

The maid shook her head

"She used to come here a long time ago"

Chloe's heart skipped

"Here?"

"Yes"

"Why?"

The maid opened her mouth to answer.

But before she could say anything, Mrs Gabriella's voice came from behind them.

"What are you two whispering about?"

The maid immediately looked down

"Nothing, ma"

Mrs Gabriella stared at her for a moment, then her gaze moved to Chloe

"Breakfast is almost ready?"

"Yes, ma"

Mrs Gabriella walked away, Chloe watched her leave.

Something was definitely being hidden from her

She just didn't know what it was

An hour later, Chloe walked into the dining room carrying a tray.

Amirion was already seated at the table, looking through some documents.

He looked up when she entered, his expression softened immediately

"You're awake early"

Chloe forced a smile as she still remembered yesterday's incident.

"I couldn't sleep"

He put the documents aside as he listened to her attentively.

"Why?"He curiously asked.

Chloe placed the tray down

"Nothing"

Amirion studied her face.

"Your face says otherwise"

Before Chloe could respond, another voice interrupted them.

"Amirion"

He froze, the smile disappeared from his face

Slowly, he turned toward the doorway

Isabella stood there.

For several seconds, neither of them spoke.

Chloe looked from one to the other, Amirion's face had gone completely blank.

"Isabella!"

She smiled

"It's been a long time"

He stood up as he cleared his throat.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you"

"You should have called first"

"I did"

Her eyes briefly moved toward Mrs Gabriella, who had just entered the room

"Your mother answered"

Amirion looked at his mother.

"You invited her?"He asked displeased.

Mrs Gabriella calmly took her seat.

"She's an old friend of the family also a good friend of yours"

"I didn't ask you that mother"

The room went silent, Chloe felt the tension immediately.

Isabella stepped closer.

"I understand you're surprised"

"Surprised isn't the word"He disagreed immediately.

She laughed softly

"You haven't changed one bit"

Amirion's expression hardened

"Neither have you"He rolled his eyes.

For a brief moment, Isabella's smile disappeared.

Then she looked at Chloe, Chloe didn't know what to say

Amirion stepped slightly closer to Chloe, it was a small movement.

Barely noticeable, but Isabella noticed

And so did Mrs Gabriella.

Isabella's eyes dropped briefly to the space between them.

Then she smiled

"Quite nteresting"

Amirion frowned

"What?"

"Nothing"

She picked up her handbag

"I think we're going to get along very well, Chloe"Isabella paused.

Chloe forced a polite smile.

She turned towards Amirion

"After all, I have plenty of time"

Amirion's eyes narrowed

"What does that mean? Don't tell me you plan to stay here"

Isabella walked past him

"It means I'm not leaving anytime soon and yes I do honey"

She paused at the doorway and glanced back at Chloe

"Welcome to the family little girl"

Then she walked away, Chloe stood completely still

Something about those words sent an uncomfortable chill through her, she looked at Amirion

"If I may ask who is she?"

He didn't answer immediately, his eyes remained fixed on the doorway Isabella had disappeared through

Finally, he turned toward Chloe

"Someone from my past"

Chloe waited

"How far in the past?"

Amirion's expression became unreadable

"Very far"

But judging by the look on his face, Chloe knew that wasn't the whole truth.

And somewhere upstairs, Mrs Gabriella was smiling because Isabella had finally arrived and the first move had already been made.