CHAPTER 6

         She took the suitcase, closed the door, and followed Marie to the car where Chris was waiting for them. Marie told him the address and ask him to drove them there. The entire trip, he couldn't stop mumbling, counting the ways he was going to make Shawn pay for what he did to Isabelle.

          Since the day Shawn joined them at the villa, Chris always protected him, keeping an eye on him, trying to continue the great job his brother and sister-in-law did before the accident. Yes, Shawn grew up to be an interesting young man, but sometimes, his behavior was to blame for certain choices.

          Cheating on Isabelle? And asking her to marry him right after that? This was too much on his part and was making Chris feel so ashamed for his behavior.  

“He’s such an idiot!” Chris exclaimed when they arrived at the apartment. “But he’ll hear me out, you can bet on it! It’s not over yet, not by a long shot! I thought we raised him better than this… I thought that his old behavior would stay in the past. My God, you are his wife… treating you like this is unthinkable in our family. Every Grayson male protects and defends his woman.”

“Well, he doesn’t see me as his… woman, as his wife. And I am sure Shawn will protect the one he really wants as you taught him,” she calmly reminded him. “It is better this way... At least, he'd fixed a couple of things… you know what I’m talking about.”

"If he hadn’t been a complete jerk since day one, if he hadn’t put you down constantly, but treated you with respect, as I taught him, there would be nothing to fix.”

          Chris stopped for a few seconds to calm down. Isabelle was already sad and broken, hearing those words won’t make her feel better.

“Listen, Isabelle, you know very well that I care a lot about Shawn, but this time I can't… I don’t know how to justify what he had done to you. All I can tell you is that he was raised better than this... I can...”

“Please,” she said, in a gentle tone, raising her hand to stop him, “let's drop this argument. I’m convinced that the pain will disappear at one point, that breathing it will become easier. Shawn made his choice and I was spared from living my whole life next to a man who doesn’t deserve me, who will never love me as much as I love him.”

“Sweet girl, whatever you decide to do in the future, you must know that you can count on us. You have to know this by now,” Chris said and Marie, who was silently crying, nodded her head, agreeing to her husband's brief statement. “We will never abandon you, rest assured of that,” he added.

“You two are fantastic and I care so much about you,” Isabelle replied hugging both of them, especially Marie who couldn’t stop sobbing. “Marie, please, don’t be like this... I promise you that I’m going to be alright. I might need a few more days to learn how to stand on my own two feet, to find the strength to walk in the sun again. Be patient with me, please. And in due time, you and I will start working together. I’m so curious to see what I’m able to do if I can help others as you helped me.”

“I am sure you will know what to do once we will start working on our projects. But don’t bother with this now. Take all the time you want!” Marie replied hugging her back.

“I have another request… At some point, Shawn will try to find out where I am staying… he will know that you helped me. Even if I would prefer you not to tell him that I am staying here, I think that is better he knows. This way he will know where to send the divorce papers.”

          The marriage annulment meant removing the name ‘Grayson’ so by doing this, Isabelle might have not getting the inheritance. But she did not care anymore. She wanted to free herself from him and his presence in her life.

“Marie, love, let’s go! Let’s leave Isabelle to rest,” Chris said smiling at the girl. “Please, call us if you need anything,” he addressed Isabelle.

“Thank you! I don’t know what I would have done without the two of you!”

          Marie started to cry again and decided to leave the apartment. She didn’t want to bother Isabelle with her tears. Chris turned to Isabelle and the expression on her face made him angry. He didn't know what to tell her or how he could be more helpful.

“You should have stayed in the apartment... It is your home too, you know?” Chris protested before going out.

“It wouldn’t make much sense, don’t you think?” she said and Chris no longer saw any emotion on her face. “It’s better this way, believe me!”

          Chris couldn’t say no, because he knew that Isabelle was right. While leaving her alone in the apartment, he was still muttering. Isabelle closed the door and looked around for a while… This was not how she pictured spending her wedding night. Alone in an unknown apartment… and him with his mistress. 

          Isabelle touched the wooden table and kept checking the house. But she stopped abruptly and felt her head spinning. She leaned against a chair, but the earth kept spinning so fast. Maybe it was because of that glass of champagne she had drunk on empty stomach...

          The urge to vomit hit her weak body and Isabelle ran to the bathroom. After a few seconds, Isabelle washed her face and looked at her pale image in the mirror, and started to think. That week she had frequent episodes like this one, but she thought they were caused by the stress with the wedding and all… Her eyes widened… Oh, God, she was late… She and Shawn did make love without using protection… Isabelle covered her mouth… Now she knew that what she was experiencing wasn’t definitely caused by drinking too much champagne.