Chapter Three
1065 Words
The first thing Isabella felt when she stirred awake was warmth.
A strange, unfamiliar kind of warmth, it wasn't the cold emptiness she’d grown accustomed to. The sheets beneath her were softer and more comfy than what she had at home. The sheet scents like expensive cologne and the remnants of last night.
The reality crashed down.
She wasn't alone.
She turned her head.
Adrian lay beside her, his bare chest rising and falling in slow, even breaths. A rush of panic surged through her veins as she carefully shifted, trying not to wake him. Arms sprawled over the sheets his features relaxed in his sleep. She couldn't deny how ridiculously handsome he was.
Her eyes shifted to the aftermath of last night, before her— her dress draped over a chair, the champagne bottle still half full on the table reminding her of how last night went.
But she couldn't stay.
She reached for her phone on the nightstand, only to frown when she found it powered off…. She pressed the button, waiting for it to come on. As soon as the screen came on, the notification flooded in.
Thirty-two missed calls.
Ten unread messages.
All from Matthew.
Her stomach twisted. She knew why he had been calling— he must have realized that she knew. That she had seen what he did. That she wasn't playing the understanding wife anymore.
Her heart beat faster as she scrolled through the messages.
Matthew: Isabella, pick up the danm phone.
Matthew: we need to talk.
Matthew: where the hell are you?
Matthew: Don’t you dare ignore me.
Her fingers curled around her phone as a chill crept up her spine.
Then she realized – why hadn't she heard any of these calls last night? She had stopped hearing them after her bath.
It took only a second for her to realize.
Adrian.
He must have turned off her phone. She felt something hot and dangerous in her tummy, — butterflies. Possessiveness? Control? She didn't know what to call it, but the fact that he had done it— that he had made sure that he had made sure she wasn't distracted from him. Unsettled her more than she cared to admit.
She glanced at him again. He was still lying there, still asleep— or so she thought.
Slipping out of the bed, she moved quickly, gathering her dress and slipping it over her head with shaky hands. She needed to get out of here, back to her friends, — whom she forgot that she had come to Vegas with, back to reality before she completely lost herself to whatever last night had been.
Carefully and quietly, she moved to the door. Just as she reached for the handle, she hesitated and cast one last look over her shoulder.
Adrian hadn't moved.
Good.
She exhaled slowly and slipped out.
What she didn't know was that Adrian had been awake the whole while.
His eyes opened the moment the door clicked shut, looking at the space she had just left. He had felt it the moment she moved and heard the quiet rustling of the fabric as she dressed. Yet he had not stopped her.
He had expected her to leave.
This was for the best.
So why did it feel wrong?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Isabella's heart was still racing by the time she reached the suite she shared with her two friends.
Diana and Elena.
She needed a drink.
When she stepped inside, she headed straight to the mini bar and poured herself a glass of whiskey which she drank in one shot, feeling the burn down to her stomach.
Before either of them could speak, she blurted out
“I slept with someone last night”
The reaction was instant.
Elena choked on her bite of toast. Diana who was halfway sipping her coffee, spat into it. Eyes wide with disbelief.
“Excuse me?” Elena coughed “Did I hear that right?”
Isabella poured another glass, downed it, and then turned, meeting their stunned gazes head-on.
“I had an affair”
Diana wiped her mouth with the back of her hand “You're joking”
Isabella let out a dry laugh, shaking her head.
“Nope”
Elena stared at her “With who?”
Isabella didn't answer immediately instead she grabbed the whiskey bottle and poured herself another glass. She stared at the liquid for a moment before finally saying.
“Adrian Woods”
The silence this time was deafening.
Diana took in a sharp breath
“Elena…. Did she just—”
“Yes”, Elena cut in “She did”
“The one and only “ added Isabella.
Diana's mouth opened–closed then
“Are you insane?” Almost in a scream.
The tension in the room thickened.
Elena was the first to snap out of her shock.
“Hold on. How did this even happen? I thought we came to Vegas for a little fun, not—” she gestured wildly “Not this”.
Isabella exhaled loudly.
Elena leaned forward “Walk us through this. How the hell did that happen?”.
Isabella took in a deep breath “I was at the casino, he was there. There was this…..moment”? Her fingers held her glass tightly “Then the elevator. Then his penthouse”.
Diana stared at her, stunned “So let me get this straight. You, Isabella Hartman, the same woman who swore she would never let Matthew's cheating turn you into someone like him—” she gestured vaguely. “You just had a one-night stand with Adrian Woods?”
Isabella set her glass down with a soft thud.
“Yes”
Elena folded her arms, studying her “And?”
Isabella blinked “And what?”
Elena leaned forward “And how do you feel about it”
She hesitated.
How did she feel?
“I don't know” she admitted.
“And do you think this is the end of it?” Elena said staring straight at Isabella “This Affair”
“Yes,” Isabella said with uncertainty. She hoped it ended here.
Diana exchanged a glance with Elena before looking back at Isabella with a knowing smile in her eyes “Honey something tells me this is just the beginning of the story”.
- Writer
