HOW COULD YOU?
"Crash."
I jumped.
It was a dry, clean crack.
I spun around, but there was only the air playing with the curtains at the windows.
I breathed in the scent of dampness and metal drifting in from outside.
I scanned the bedroom.
Everything was exactly as it had been when I woke up.
There was no sign that anything had fallen.
"I imagined it," I thought.
I turned back to the door.
I opened it.
Slowly.
My hand trembled slightly against the cold, sticky metal knob.
If there was someone—or something—there… I didn't want to scare it away.
Then I heard another crack.
Identical to the first.
"Crash."
Followed by a wet smack.
Obscene.
And a moan.
My heart crushed against my ribs.
I walked hugging the wall.
The sounds grew sharper.
Constant.
Aggressive.
"Oh… Hugo…"
There was a door slightly ajar and I peeked in.
I covered my mouth with both hands.
Him.
My CEO.
With an unknown woman.
The world stopped.
It was… the exact same scene from my dream.
But how?
It made no sense.
"Yes… Hugo… mmm…"
The sound of bodies rubbing together felt like whispered blasphemy in hell.
The slap of every thrust.
His hoarse groans.
I stopped looking.
I pressed my hands hard over my ears and fled.
I stumbled down the stairs and didn't stop until I was far away.
Only then could I think.
How could he be capable of this?
Was it part of the game?
Was that woman…
"Her"?
"You have to get a hold of yourself, Isabella," I muttered. "You can't let your emotions control you. You've already gotten this far."
My next move had to be flawless.
I faked a calm that was false but convincing enough.
And I walked to the kitchen.
I was starving.
That dream… wouldn't leave my mind.
And it was that woman making it real.
When I got there, I slammed my fists onto the counter until they hurt.
A thin line of blood welled up from the cut on my hand that had reopened.
I stood there, mesmerized, staring at the sink.
"Plop."
It was leaking.
"Plop."
Exactly four seconds between each drop.
"Plop."
Suddenly blood appeared before my eyes.
Splashing across mirrors…
I stopped breathing.
Why was I seeing that?
Shit.
I turned on the faucet to wash my hands.
A mechanical but urgent movement.
The dull roar of running water was soothing.
The seconds blurred as I decided…
"Are you hungry, miss?"
I looked sharply to my right, eyes wide as saucers.
There was a woman.
At least… she was real.
"Who are you?"
"I sometimes work for Mr. Caleius."
I closed the faucet.
"Were you the one who made breakfast?"
She looked at me strangely.
"I can prepare something for you," she said instead.
I sighed.
"Thank you. Yes, I'm starving," I growled.
"Anything special?"
I shrugged.
"Anything will be fine."
The woman opened the windows.
The grayish afternoon light slipped in like freezing mist.
It filled everything with that wet-metal smell.
I tasted it on my tongue.
"Is it still raining?"
"It's going to rain for several days. Is the car outside yours?"
"How do you know?"
"It's been there too long."
I sat at the table, tapping the surface lightly with my fingers.
"Too long how?"
"Days."
My fingers froze in the air.
"That's not true," I murmured. "Only since last night."
Something that smelled really good started sizzling in a pan.
"Ah," the maid said, distracted. "Then it must be someone else's car."
"Surely," I muttered through my teeth.
And I went back to tapping.
This time less controlled.
HE SAID I WASN'T THE ONLY ONE.
When I returned, I stopped at the foot of the stairs.
My fists clenched.
Hugo and that woman were coming down.
His hand on her waist.
He was whispering things in her ear, making her laugh.
My whole body tensed like a bowstring.
"I shouldn't feel jealous.
He said I wasn't the only one."
He saw me first.
His eyes darkened and he gave a fleeting smile.
"You're still here?"
That's when she noticed me.
She was beautiful.
Her blue eyes scanned me from head to toe.
I saw a small mockery in them.
I didn't move.
"Are you her?" My voice came out thick.
She looked surprised and glanced at Hugo.
He shrugged.
"What are you talking about, Isabella?"
I didn't look at him.
My eyes stayed fixed on his lover.
"Her," I repeated.
A few steps more and she stopped in front of me.
My gaze dropped to a ring identical to mine on her finger.
My ring. The one he gave me before… No. That never happened.
He never gave me anything.
Or did he?
She noticed and raised her hand.
"Do you like it?"
It was a provocation, but I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction.
I smiled sharply.
"Are you his fiancée?"
Hugo stood beside her.
I could swear he was enjoying this.
This was the kind of game he meant.
I widened my smile.
I looked at her again.
"Aren't you going to answer?"
A shadow crossed her blue eyes.
Like an unexpected black cloud in a clear sky.
And she hesitated.
It was minimal, but enough for me to know I shouldn't believe a word she said.
"Yes," she said, wrapping her arms around Hugo. "I'm engaged to the hottest and most successful CEO in the city."
It wasn't true.
"Congratulations."
"Thank you, Isabella."
My name in her mouth felt like a punch.
"How do you know me?" I frowned, but my voice stayed steady.
"Hugo told me about you."
I crossed my arms. That I hadn't expected.
"Really? And what did he say?"
"Nothing special. Just that you were a prowler."
Pum. There it was.
The first direct hit.
But I recovered.
Hiding my trembling hands in my lap.
"Interesting," I said slowly, looking at him. He didn't react. "So that's what I am?"
"I thought you'd leave," his tone was cynical.
He didn't take his eyes off me.
As if he were waiting for me to explode.
But I didn't. I laughed.
Almost until tears came.
They just waited.
"It's… hilarious," I managed to say. "I didn't know you had such a good sense of humor…"
"Basta," he growled.
A crack appeared, and it was glorious.
For the first time I was having fun despite that woman.
I stepped closer to her.
She smelled of expensive perfume and him.
His tobacco, his cologne, his sweat.
His sex.
"You're not her," I whispered. "You don't have her voice."
I pulled away.
And in that moment I felt powerful.
"I suppose you'll invite me to the wedding…"
She made a small grimace.
"I don't know," she grabbed Hugo's hand, visibly upset. "Let's go."
But he pulled free.
"Wait for me in the foyer, Sue," he asked with a fake smile. "I need to tell this woman something."
She nodded and left without looking at me.
Sue.
Perfect.
Suddenly Hugo was inches from me.
I expected a scolding.
Instead, he smiled.
"Excellent first round, intruder…" he hissed. "…I can't wait for the next one. Now… disappear."
He straightened up, smoothing his hair.
His eyes flashed.
I was about to say something.
But Sue's raw, terrified scream stopped me.
Hugo didn't move.
Neither did I.
Until it came again.
Louder. Longer.
Almost agonized.
Then he ran.
And I just smiled again.