Isabella~"How's my acting, Mama? In this courtroom drama, I played the role of a judge." Alan rushed to embrace my knees as soon as he saw me."You were amazing. Alan, I wish you would become a judge in the future." I took him in my arms and kissed his forehead."No, Mama, I want to be a police officer." He rubbed his cheek, trying to erase the imprints of my kiss."Bella, to fulfill your dream, you should plan another kid because Alan didn’t seem interested in becoming a judge." James made fun of me when he learned that Alan wanted to become a police officer."James, not again." Since I was finding it more difficult to hide my blush, I asked him to refrain from making fun of me in front of my family."What are you saying in my wife's ear, James, that she can't hide her blush?" Xavier approached us and wrapped his arms around me in a possessive manner. His sudden possessiveness surprised me. I felt uncomfortable experiencing his closeness in front of Dad because he still did not appr
Xavier~"Please open the door, Bella." I knocked on her room's door, but she refused to engage in conversation. "Damn it, it's all my fault." How could I lose control over my emotions? How could I use my dominance to control her? When I saw her conversing with James, I was so envious that I gave her a forceful kiss to prove to him that she was mine. Despite my best efforts to suppress my envy, I felt extremely insecure about the way James looked at Bella. Even though Victor had previously informed me that Bella had little interest in men, my envy and fears peaked when I learned that so many men had proposed to her."Bella, I am sorry; please listen to me once." I pleaded with her to open the door again, but she didn't respond. Was she punishing me for what I did—or for something else I couldn’t see?"Is everything all right, Xavier?" James followed me to her room and questioned me. When I saw him there, I became even more irritated."James, this all happened because of you." I made
Isabella~"Bella, is everything all right between you and Xavier?" The next morning, Victor came into my room before breakfast. "Yes, absolutely." After hearing his query, the memories of last night flashed before my eyes, but I decided to keep quiet because I didn't want to talk to anyone about our private issues. Xavier's forced kiss has deeply hurt me, yet I choose not to express it through my behavior. "I noticed that Xavier is upset from last night, so I thought that something happened between you two." He fixed his gaze on my face as if he were trying to see the lie hidden in my calm face. "Perhaps the case is stressing him out." I combed my hair and then tied it into a tidy bun. "Maybe you are right; let me drop you off at your office. I'm headed towards your office today." When he saw my car keys in my hand, he offered me a ride in his car. "No, I will manage; I have an important meeting with a client." I grabbed my purse from the side table and headed down the stairs.
Xavier~"Bella, we should leave now before he comes here and catches us red-handed." What does that mean? Where are they exactly? Before I could ask him any questions, I heard James' voice on the call, which surprised me. The call disconnected, and after that, he did not receive my call. Bella did not receive my call either. Hearing James' voice makes it very evident that they are now together and concealing something from me. What, though, were they hiding?I can't believe that Bella can hide something from me; I am sure she will tell me the whole story when she returns home. I tried to ignore the negative thoughts that were racing through my mind, but I couldn't help but feel frustrated due to my strong suspicions about the developing relationship between Bella and James.I begged her to forgive me last night, but she was not willing to talk or listen to me. Was my mistake so severe that she couldn't forgive me? She belongs to me, so what’s the big deal if I kiss her? I tried to st
Isabella~"Bella, we should leave now." After Xavier left for his court hearing, James called me."Give me five minutes; I’ll be there." I immediately jumped out of my bed and walked out of the house. Fortunately, Dad left early for urgent work; otherwise, I would have had to respond to his pointed inquiries before I could leave."Let’s go," I said, opening the car door and seating myself in the passenger seat."Bella, what’s all this?" James asked, puzzled, gazing at the dark circles under my eyes and my disheveled hair. "I pretended to Xavier that I was sick, but to make my lie seem more realistic, I had to maintain this appearance." I shrugged my shoulders and took out a comb from my bag."Bella, please improve your appearance; I’m scared seeing you like this," James teased."Stop mocking me and focus on driving," I replied, punching him lightly on the shoulder.Today is an extraordinary day for Xavier, and I wanted to be with him. However, after discovering that yellow file, u
Xavier~"My lord, I would like to summon John Woods to the witness box." I fixed my coat and asked the judge for permission to allow me to interrogate John Woods."Permission granted." The judge gestured to me to call John and looked at me with a hope-filled expression."John Woods, how long have you known Victor Thompson?" I questioned him as soon as he stood in the witness box."For the last three years." He hesitatingly replied after seeing Victor.Victor's eyes brimmed with pain and embarrassment as he scrutinized John's face. John's deceit profoundly wounded him. He conceals a wide range of emotions behind his composed exterior. Because I have personally experienced deceit, pain, remorse, fear, and embarrassment, I can truly relate to Victor's plight."Were you already married or in a relationship when you met Victor?" I kept my composure to conceal my anxiety, but beneath it all was the pressure to win this case and establish my worth."Yes, I was married at that time." John gav
Isabella~"Xavier, I am so happy for you." As soon as he came out of the courtroom, I hugged him happily."What are you doing here, Isabella? You were sick, right?" He broke the hug and looked at me with suspicion."Sorry, I lied to you." I nervously rubbed my back, determined to tell him the truth."Hmm, I can understand now; you don't want to accompany me because you want to hang out with your new friend, right?" His voice became resentful, the sharp tone cutting through my defenses."Xavier, what are you talking about?" I looked at his face with confusion, feeling the weight of his mistrust sinking in."James William, weren’t you with him?" He gave me a raised eyebrow, his doubtful eyes piercing my heart."Yes, I was with him, not because I wanted to hang out with him, but for other reasons." I tried to clarify his misunderstanding, feeling the urgency to make him understand."I don’t want to hear any more excuses, Isabella. I already saw what you were doing with him in his car." H
Xavier~"Where is Bella? Don’t you bring Bella with you?" Dad questioned me when I reached home."She has some important work; she will come later." I lied to him because I didn’t want to tell him the truth.The truth is, after seeing her photograph, I became so angry with her that I didn’t want to talk to her. How could she so confidently lie to me? Is this her way of exacting revenge on me? She deceived me in the past by lying about her relationship with Victor, and now she is attempting to deceive me once more by hanging out with James."Bella, why did you come so late? Where have you been busy today?" When I heard Dad’s voice, I turned to face the hall’s entrance."I missed my taxi, Dad." She entered the hall. There was no trace of sorrow or guilt on her face."Taxi? However, Xavier told me that you didn’t accompany him home because you had an urgent job to complete." He gave her a suspicious glance before turning to face me.I bowed my head to shield my face from his suspicious g
Isabella~"Thank God, we finally returned to the USA." When I heard Xavier's voice, I opened my eyes. The journey had been perilous and exhausting. Undoubtedly, Uncle Jorawar will be pleased to learn that we have taken Jonathan into custody.I took Xavier's hand and ran my thumb over it. "Do you truly believe it's that simple, Bella?" He raised his brow and questioned me, his expression dark."What's the issue now? Xavier, everything is in order now. We've filed a case against Jonathan and asked the Italian police to transfer him to the US police." I didn't understand why he still looked so worried about Jonathan when everything seemed sorted."Given that we assisted Italian authorities in apprehending Jonathan, do you believe Jordan will remain silent?" Xavier's forehead creased with tension.His words made my chest tighten. "What will Jordan Lucas do in this case? He has no authority over the Italian police." I tried to sound confident, though a flicker of doubt crept in."He mig
Xavier~"Are you ready, Jacqueline?" I teased James, unable to resist the opportunity since he was dressed like a woman."Don't play with me, Xavier; otherwise, I will punch your handsome face, turning it blue." He angrily gritted his teeth, his voice unusually high-pitched to match his disguise."Don't be too harsh on your delicate hands, Jacqueline." I smirked, taking his hand and running my thumb over it."Bella, ask this bastard to stop teasing me; otherwise, I will kick him in his main part, and he will not be able to fulfill Alan's desire!" James shot Bella an irritated look."Stop it, Xavier. How can you make fun of him in such a risky situation? You know that what James is going to do is not a simple task," Bella scolded, her expression deadly serious."I know, my sweetheart, but he looks so gorgeous in this attire that I can't hold myself back from flirting with him. Trust me, Bella, if he were a woman, I'd propose to him right now." I burst into laughter as I glanced at Jame
Isabella~"Why did you flee from that building, Xavier? You know we have a chance to apprehend him." I looked at him angrily as he was running from Jonathan."Use your common sense, Bella; you have no idea how dangerous Jonathan is. He's not like Jordan. If we don't flee from him, he will kill us." He looked behind to check whether Jonathan was still following us or not, his sharp eyes scanning the streets for any sign of pursuit."But now, how will we bring justice to Laila?" As we paused near the police station, I questioned him again, my voice trembling with frustration."For now, let's put Laila out of our minds; we need to get back to the United States," he said, his tone curt. He asked me not to overthink this, but the words felt like a dismissal, and my chest tightened.James made me sit on the bench. His heavy breathing and sweat dripping down his forehead gave me an idea of how exhausting carrying me must have been. Despite his weariness, he cast me a reassuring smile, as if
Xavier~What are we going to do now? Her questioning gaze fixed on my face. Since I was also unsure of what we should do at this point, I looked at James' face to get a hint about our next course of action. Jonathan and his shooters were staring at us with excitement, so I wanted to let him know that we were lawyers, not artists, and that I had no idea what I should perform when confronting themJames came up with the plan to alter our look to trick the gunmen, but Bella's obstinacy has caused us to follow Jonathan here instead. Jonathan's menacing grey eyes gleamed in the room's darkness, giving us the impression that we were standing in front of a ravenous lion within his den."What are you waiting for? My gunmen will shoot you if you don't perform soon."Two large shadows caught my attention behind his chair. They loomed like silent sentinels, their sharp eyes never leaving us."Without music, I can't dance." I adjusted the tone of my voice and explained my incapacity to perform,
Isabella~"What are you doing here?"I heard noises and a dangerous voice around me, and I opened my eyes. The dim glow of the museum flickered across the room. My heart sank."We were new to this place and had lost our way," James said, his voice trembling with forced politeness.What’s going on here? Where are we? I looked around to see what was happening in my immediate environment. Three gunmen stood in front of us, pointing their weapons at us. Xavier stood like a mountain, his arms wrapped tightly around my waist, his presence grounding me in the face of fear."Where do you want to go?" I heard the piercing voice of one of the gunmen, his tone sharp enough to cut through the tense silence."We want to go to this drama theater." James reached into his coat and pulled out one card, his hands slightly tremblingbut his expressioncalm.Drama-theater? What is he talking about? I looked at him in confusion. Why did he dress in pirate clothes?"Have you seen any of them? We are actively
Xavier~"Bella, how did this happen?" I worriedly glanced at her broken leg. It's only been two days without her, but it feels like an eternity. When I learned she had checked out from the hotel, fear consumed me. I repeatedly dialed her number, but it was unreachable. My mind spiraled as I imagined the worst.Seeing her like this now, vulnerable and hurt, my jealousy and anger resurfaced. Her ignorant behavior toward me before leaving for Italy had already stung, but now I couldn’t hold back the flood of questions."Xavier, promise me first that you will not be angry with me after hearing the truth," she said, releasing me from our embrace and meeting my gaze."Please tell me everything first, and then I’ll decide." My fingers grazed her chin as I spoke, but my eyes shifted to James, narrowing in suspicion.My heart warred with itself, pleading with me to trust James, the friend I’d known since childhood. Yet my jealousy silenced those pleas. I couldn’t ignore the thought that he mig
Isabella~"James, are you sure we’ll find Jonathan here?" I questioned him in a doubt-filled tone, my unease growing with every passing second."Yes, Bella. I got this address from my informant." He motioned for me to exit the taxi.The chilly Italian air stung my skin as I stepped onto the deserted street. My life had completely transformed in just two days. Two days ago, my family and I were in the United States, and now I found myself in this unknown, freezing city, chasing someone I’d never even met.When James told me that Jonathan had moved to Italy after Laila’s passing, I knew I had no choice but to come. Jordan Lucas had already tricked Uncle Jorawar and dragged us into this chaos, and now Jonathan was my only lead. I wanted to share the truth about this trip with Xavier, but his erratic behavior and mistrust made it impossible. If I’d told him I was coming to find Jonathan, he would’ve stopped me no matter what.Despite the guilt of keeping secrets, I had to take this chanc
Xavier~"Bella, what happened suddenly? You love him, right?" Dad looked at her in disbelief."Yes, Dad, but I want to take my time and not rush things. I want to understand him better before marrying him." She fidgeted with her fingers and then looked at my face."Well, it's your choice, Bella. I don't want to impose anything on you." After letting out a long sigh, Dad accepted her choice."Thank you, Dad." After hugging him, she went to the kitchen.I don’t understand why she suddenly changed her mind. Is she no longer in love with me? I followed her to the kitchen, hoping to talk with her, but she didn’t show any interest. Her coldness was unbearable. I replayed every interaction in my mind, searching for what I had done wrong.I’ve always trusted her words, but seeing her with James stirred my insecurities. My desire to win her back always overtook my reason whenever I saw them together. Bella is the kind of woman every man dreams of having, and I can’t help but fear losing her. B
Isabella~"Hey Xavier, congratulations, buddy." I turned around after hearing James' voice. He was standing at the kitchen's entrance. His tightened jaw and white knuckles indicated that he was not pleased to see James here."Why are you congratulating me? I should be the one to congratulate you on your achievement, James." He approached us, his every move deliberate and slow, as if he were trying to control his anger."What are you saying?" James looked at him with confusion."You understand clearly what I mean, am I right, Bella?" Xavier’s doubt-filled eyes made me his target.In an attempt to gain his trust, I gazed intently into his lovely blue eyes, but all I could see were anger and jealousy."Xavier, listen, you misunderstood our relationship; we are just friends." James attempted to clarify his misunderstanding after noticing the tension between us."Do you think I'm a fool, James? Do you think I am not aware of your late-night conversations and the fact that you two spent the