_Five years ago.Peace at last. Isabella wiggled her toes and played with the bubbles from the overflowing jacuzzi. The Montego family was away on vacation. The staff was not allowed to use the jacuzzi, and that included her. But who's going to tell? If ever she were to get caught she knew Frank Montego would laugh it off, but his wife, Rosetta would march to the heavens for her to get fired. Then there were the two sons, Eric and Dominic. Eric stayed abroad and they didn't see much of him. Then there was the eldest son, Dominic. She rolled her eyes. The frightening Dominic. She doubted Dominic even knew she existed. The only time he looked at anyone was to give them his icy glare. Apart from that, he kept to himself. Some said he ran the family business alongside his father.A business that none of them knew what it entailed. But one thing was certain, The Montego family was rolling in dough. The family home had been a castle that got converted into a home. With twenty bedrooms, an
"What are you going to do to me?" she asked."Spank you." He said without batting an eyelid. Her mouth hung open and she stared at him. And Dominic wasn't in the least bothered. if anything, he was growing impatient. She took off her pants and stood in front of him in her cotton knickers. "Come here." he patted his thigh for her to lie on. This was by far the worst humiliation she had ever experienced. She lay her stomach flat against his thigh and waited. The first slap came fast and hard. She bit inside her palm to keep from screaming. After the second one, she struggled away from him and tumbled down to the cold floor. "Anything but this, I'll take any punishment but this," she said rubbing her sore backside. His grey gaze had turned a darker shade of silver. He looked at her for a minute and then took a swing from his bottle."You too young for anything else." He put the bottle down and fixed the sleeves of his shirt. "I'm twenty-two, I'm old enough."Isabella blurted out,
Two weeks had passed since the day she listened to Dominic and Joseph's conversation. The mansion was swamped with maids and cooks everywhere, tonight was Dominic's big party. His parents were back from vacation and his brother was expected to arrive before the party. Isabella was now used to her duties as Dominic's maid. She woke up and ran Dominic his bath, and ran any errands he might require of her. Now that she was done tending to Dominic's needs, she was helping Mrs brown polish the wood on the staircase. The sun was making its final journey on the sky and the house looked like a dream. The first guests were expected to start arriving right after sunset. Only a few girls were chosen to help with the party tonight and Isabella wasn't one of them. Nevertheless, she was determined to be part of the party. Earlier in the day, she had collected stones to stand on top of and watch from a window, the window that she selected would give her a perfect view of the party because she
Five years laterDominic Montego's jaw tightened as he looked at the layout of his family estate from the air. From up here he could make out every inch of land and most importantly, he could see that damned cottage, its coming to view only added to the burning hatred he felt for the place. Coming back home brought nothing but memories he would rather forget. He hadn't been home in over four years. Running a business abroad and conveniently burying himself in work, had been a good excuse not to come home until now. What made matters more pressing was that his father had been murdered in cold blood, butsuch was the fate of many mafia men. A fate he vowed not to be part of. No matter how painful coming back home was, he needed to get over it and forget everything that had happened in that cottage. The only thing that should be at the forefront of his mind now was his father's legacy, taking the Montego empire to soaring heights. And finishing what the old man had started.He blinke
[Eight weeks later.]_Isabella_I threw my backpack on the floor the minute I entered my room, kicked off my shoes, and lay cross-legged on my single bed.Exams were finally over for the semester. I could finally breathe. But I was far from being done with school. I had about three more years to go. But for now, I could breathe before going to work in like...ten minutes.I closed my eyes and let out a sigh. My relaxation was over, I needed to change for work. I walked over to my window and peeked at the road below. It was deserted due to a large number of students who were already done for the semester and had gone home.The cafe was not far, but the silence gave the place an eerie feeling. After changing and putting on music to lift my spirits, I made my way downstairs to the lobby. Mike, the security guard gave me a gentle nod as I passed him and out of the building. It looked like it would be me and him during this summer break. I stopped at the pedestrian crossing, not because
"Want to take a look?" Stephanie asked. Isabella woke from her daze. She had completely switched off while the young man was doing her hair and makeup. She opened her eyes and someone like her looked back at her.She looked... beautiful. Although that was the last thing she wanted to admit at the moment, the man knew what he was doing. She looked like a porcelain doll, perfect and cold. She flipped her lashes and closed and opened her eyes. It was her."This is not me," she whispered to herself, but it was not soft enough because Stephanie turned to face her."This is the best version of you. Your groom is going to flip when he sees you."Stephanie helped her into the dress and zipped her up. She couldn't help but steal a glance at herself in the mirror. The dress fitted her like a glove. A tap on the door brought her back to her reality and Stephanie rushed over to speak to whoever was at the door. "You need to be going already," Stephanie said apologetically. He put her shoes on a
_Isabella_After the previous day's events, I knew who my kidnapper was and that he was not looking to harvest my organs. I let myself relax a little. I took time to enjoy the soft bed and its pillows a little longer than I would have done in my dorm room. Once I was done taking a bath. I wrapped a towel around myself and got back to my room. I was overwhelmed with a sense of Deja Vu.But once I looked around the room and realized the predicament I was in. I sat on the edge of the bed and sighed loudly. I had no clothes to wear. I had left the clothes I was wearing with Stephanie the day before, knowing the state they were in, I'm sure he shoved them in a trash bin the minute I walked out of the room.The only thing I had was a white dress and shoes. I put on the shoes and threw the towel on the bed and walked out of the room."So good of you to finally join me," I heard Dominic's voice before I even came into view.He must have heard the clicking sound of my shoes. My wedding shoes
_Dominic_A normal conversation was hard to have with Isabella. One minute she was calm, and the next she was flying off the handle.I stood at the door of her room and thought about what steps I would take about our situation going forward.Luckily for me, someone knocked on her door and I turned around and faced her."Should I open?" She seemed to come back to her senses because of the prospect of someone seeing her naked. She pulled the bed covers over her naked form and looked at me as if expecting an answer.I opened her door slightly and poked my head out. It was Joseph carrying a large box."Delivery for Mrs. Montego." He cleared his throat and swallowed.Whatever reservations Joseph had about my relationship with Isabella, he was wise enough not to voice them, but I knew that he did not approve of the way I had approached the situation.Luckily for everyone, it was my situation and I would sort it out the best way I knew how, and this was the best way."Thank you, Joseph, I'll
_Isabella As Kate got dressed and modelled out of the room, I folded my arms and stared at Dominic. “What the hell is going on here?” I asked, we were both surprised at my tone. “It's nothing you should concern yourself about. There is nothing between me and her. I don't know how she got in here.” That was saying a lot for someone who seemed to know everything all the time. “You're right, you don't seem to know anything lately.” I blindly threw my weapon, and it seemed to land on its mark as he blinked twice before looking at me again. Maybe he had been right all along. Dominic was losing focus, and this was no place to raise kids. Everyone did as they pleased, any time. “The stress is unhealthy for the baby. You've had a long night and need some rest. IL sort this out.” He said as he recovered from his mini shock. Even though I didn't believe that he was thinking about the baby at that instant, I got worried as well. I felt my cheeks getting heated. I was embarras
_Isabella The mansion felt strange after my time in the cabin. Although I hadn't been there long, the tension between Dominic and me was palpable. After he picked us up from Nick's truck, he'd only asked if we were hurt before retreating to his study. I spent time with the chef, who made me a delicious steak that I devoured in seconds. If anyone noticed the tension between Dominic and me, they were too polite to mention it. "Don't mind him, he's under a lot of pressure," Joseph said from nowhere, tension must have been written all over my body, as he was speaking from behind me. "I know." there was no point in pretending that I hadn't been thinking about him. Embarrassed that I'd been caught, I got up from my chair and headed to the sink to put my plate. "You bring warmth to this place," Joseph said, He was leaning against the wall. "I thought I brought trouble," I replied, taking my sit to sip on my juice. I realized with a pang that my dietary needs had been changed; the ch
_Isabella Nick took a sharp left, switched off the pickups lights, and then we zigzagged into a country road, before coming to a stop behind an overgrown hedge. I looked behind us and our pursuers were nowhere to be seen. “How do you know they won’t find us here?” now that the adrenaline was wearing off, I felt numb and shaken. “Because not many people know about this off-ramp, it has saved me many times before.” There was a story there, but maybe later. He turned off the engine and opened his door. “Where are you going?” I asked, wanting some fresh air myself. “To take a leak, that was close.” He shut his door with a bang. I opened the passenger door and jumped out. The night was still, without a leaf rustling out of place, but the midnight air still stung. I wrapped my arms around myself and stood against the body of the pick-up. “The stars look more bright from here than anywhere else.” I said, enjoying the gulps of the fresh air, making the most of the gift that
_Dominic Once everyone had settled, the drinks started flowing and so did the conversation. Even Ludo's speaking volume had gone up another annoying inch higher. When a waiter surfaced from the back to take out orders, I could tell Ludo was well on his way from the slap he gave the young woman's behind. "As I was saying, Montego, the shipments of girls is increasing..." I fet my body tense up at the mention of the flesh business, but I made a mental note to keep my body relaxed."Which means more money for us." I said enthusiastically and took my glass to wash off the bad taste in my mouth. "Yes, it's more money." He said with a more sombre mood than I expected from him."Then why do you sound worried?" I asked and Ludo leaned back on his chair with a worried expression on his face. "The quality of girls has been dropping in recent months, it seems like someone has been taking a dip into our business." into his business he meant. I didn't want my name tainted with such."Mm..."
_Dominic Everything was set, and the chef was already at the back preparing the meal of the evening, but Ludo was nowhere to be seen. “Where is that fat bastard?” I asked Joseph, who shrugged in response. I was getting agitated with each passing second. “He will be here, calm down. Everything is ready to go.” He finally said when he noticed that I was blowing air like an angry bull. Plus, I hated the fact that he was calm, while I felt like a boiling kettle. “Stop checking your watch, it will not make the time to move any faster.” He said looking at my wristwatch, I hadn't even been aware that I was checking it. We were at the restaurant that Ludo had picked. It was empty because we had booked the entire place for the night. And now the idiot was running late. The bell on the door ding donged, to signal that someone had arrived. I fought the edge to turn my head and look, but once the door closed, I heard the sound of a women's shoes clicking against the floor. Now I had
_IsabellaNick's truck was as reliable as him. The pickup drove steadily out of the woods and towards the city.Although I watched the woods slowly fade away and the scenery change into a flat road that stretched on for miles, my mind was a few miles ahead of us, playing different scenes of what sort of outcome was going to come out from the trip. Nick kept on stealing glances in my direction, and I was very much aware of his glances, but I kept quiet. In the short while that I had known him, I knew he wanted to say something, maybe ask about the money. So I thought I would make it easier on him.“You must be wondering where I got all that money?” I said, my voice feeling croaky. “No.” he answered softly. I sat up straighter and looked at him. “What do you mean, no, I've seen the way you have been looking at me since we left the cabin.”“I'm worried about you, Isabella.” He said, looking at me before focusing on the road again. “Why?” I asked, and as soon as the words left my mo
_Isabella After Dominic and his entourage left the cabin. I prepared Cesare for his bath and sat In the lounge long after he had gone to bed. I still hadn't said anything to Dominic about Nick. And I was starting to worry that I should have said something. The way he ran out when he saw that I had a visitor was suspicious. I went into the bed and opened the only closet in the room. The bag of money was still where I had left it. If someone knew about the money…if the wrong person knew, I would be in deep trouble. Was Nick the wrong person? What if he was an investigator who knew about Dominic's extra activities on the side? I was getting tired of the uncertainties, I was going to get answers. I pulled the closest sweater and looked around the room. There was still the bag that came with my change of clothes. I took the clothes out and stacked money inside the bag before putting some clothes back. But that didn't seem like a wise idea, so I took the clothes and money out a
_Dominic"What are you planning?" Joseph asked me the minute we were safely alone in the car."Nothing fancy, just dinner with Ludo. I might even get dessert depending on my mood later on.""The only problem is that you hate the man." he pointed out the obvious."Yes, I do. It's just dinner, I'm not asking him to be my life partner." at the mention of his name my phone beeped, and I showed Joseph the message."Prepare for dinner, I need you looking your best sharp self tonight." I typed some keys on my phone, dinner plans were already in motion."Any particular plan I should be made aware of? I don't want to embarrass you in front of polite company." He looked at me with a slight smile.I liked this side of Joseph, the other sides were debatable."You catch on fast. The usual plan will be fine." I said and he nodded. "You need to get the chef in town on time, tell him he has a gig, only his best steak will do for tonight.""What about his mashed potatoes?" Joseph asked and we both sta
_DominicWe were back at the house and Joseph was standing by the doorway and wouldn’t stop looking at me. “How long are you going to play this game? Just tell her the full story.” He said softly.I paused and gave him my full attention,“I can't dump everything on her, not until I have tied up all the loose ends”. I stood up to put away the files I’d been using.When he didn’t say anything, I added, “If you have anything else, please, I have a meeting and you are welcome to join me.” I winked at him.“She seemed preoccupied, like she was expecting anyone but me.” He finally spoke up.A chuckle passed my lips at his words.“She is in a cabin in the woods, who can she possibly be meeting, the rabbits and foxes?” I asked him.“Are you going to leave her without protection all alone with your son?”“She has protection.” I sighed, Joseph was not going to let this one go until he got whatever he came for.“Not from what I saw and what Vini told me.”“Vini? what does Vini have anything to d