Isabella's Point of View
I cannot sleep all night. Veronica's words play over and over in my head like a broken record.
"Trust me, brother."
Brother. Veronica has a brother. And they are planning something against Ethan. Something that involves me and Oliver.
But who is her brother? And what do they want?
At six in the morning, I give up trying to sleep. I make coffee and sit at my kitchen table thinking. Oliver is still sleeping. His soft breathing is the only sound in our quiet apartment.
I need to know more about Veronica's plan. But how can I find out without her knowing I heard her phone call?
My phone buzzes. A text from Ethan.
"Good morning. I will show you around the office today. Introduce you to the team. Be ready at eight."
Eight o'clock. In one hour I have to go back to that building. Back to Veronica's cold smiles and Ethan's intense stares.
I wake Oliver and help him get dressed.
"Mommy, you look tired," he says. His little hands touch my face.
"I am okay, baby. Just thinking about work."
"Do you like your new job?"
How do I answer that? I hate working with Ethan. I hate being near Veronica. But I love the money that will help me keep Oliver safe.
"It is complicated."
"There is that word again." Oliver giggles. "Everything grown-ups do is complicated."
If only he knew how complicated.
I drop Oliver at daycare and drive to Blackwell Tower. My hands shake on the steering wheel. I keep thinking about Veronica's phone call. Who was she talking to? What are they planning?
The elevator ride to the fiftieth floor feels like forever. When the doors open, Veronica is waiting for me.
"Good morning, Isabella. You look... tired."
"I slept fine."
"Really? Because you have dark circles under your eyes." She tilts her head like she is studying me. "I hope you are not getting sick. Ethan would be so worried."
There is something in her voice. Something that makes me think she knows I heard her phone call last night.
"Where is Ethan?"
"In his office. He is very excited to show you around today. Like a proud husband showing off his wife."
Ex-wife, I want to say. But I keep my mouth shut.
Ethan's office door opens. He walks out wearing a dark blue suit that makes his green eyes look even brighter. For a second, I remember how handsome I thought he was when we first met. Before everything went wrong.
"Isabella. Ready for the tour?"
"Sure."
"We will start with the marketing department. Since that is where you will be working most closely."
We walked down a long hallway. Our feet make no sound on the thick carpet. Everything in this building is expensive and quiet and perfect.
"The marketing team is on the forty-eighth floor," Ethan says as we wait for the elevator.
I nod but do not say anything. Veronica walks with us. She keeps looking at me like she is waiting for something.
The elevator doors close. We are alone together for the first time since last night. Ethan looks at me in the reflection on the shiny elevator walls.
"Did you tell Oliver about me?"
"Not yet."
"Isabella, he needs to know before Saturday."
"I know."
"Do you want me to be there when you tell him?"
"No."
The elevator stops at the forty-eighth floor. The doors open to a big room full of desks and computers. People look up when they see Ethan.
"Good morning, Mr. Blackwell," they say.
"Good morning, everyone. I want you to meet Isabella Morgan. She will be working with us on the new hotel campaign."
I see the looks on their faces. Some know who I am. They remember when I used to come to company parties with Ethan. When I wore his wedding ring and smiled at his side.
Now I am just Isabella Morgan. Not Mrs. Blackwell anymore.
"Isabella used to work in marketing before," Ethan says. "She has excellent ideas and a fresh perspective."
A young woman with red hair raises her hand. "Will she be part of our team permanently?"
"For the next six weeks," Ethan answers. "Then we will see."
Then we will see. Like I am on trial. Like I have to prove myself worthy of staying in his world.
"Sarah, you will be Isabella's main contact," Ethan says to the red-haired woman. "Show her how we organize our projects."
Sarah nods and walks over to me. She seems nice but I can see the questions in her eyes.
"Nice to meet you, Isabella. I have heard a lot about you."
I bet you have, I think.
We walked around the department. Ethan introduces me to more people. Marketing managers. Graphic designers. Account coordinators. They all smile and say nice things but I can feel them staring when they think I am not looking.
"And this is David Chen," Ethan says as we stop at a desk near the windows. "Our best copywriter."
David stands up and shakes my hand. He is young, maybe twenty-five, with kind eyes behind wire glasses.
"Actually, we have met before," David says. "At the Christmas party three years ago. You probably do not remember."
But I do remember. David was new then. Shy and nervous at his first company party. I talked to him about books because he looked so uncomfortable.
"I remember," I say. "You were reading a book by the punch bowl instead of dancing."
David smiles. "You told me that books were better company than most people at parties."
"I still think that."
Ethan watches our conversation with a strange look on his face. Like he is jealous that David and I are talking.
"David will help you with any writing you need," Ethan says. His voice sounds different. Colder.
We continue the tour. More introductions. More polite smiles. More whispered conversations when we walk away.
Finally, we go back to the fiftieth floor. I am exhausted from pretending everything is normal. From acting like being here does not hurt.
"Any questions?" Ethan asks as we stand by my new desk.
"Just one. When can I start working from home?"
Ethan's jaw tightens. "I told you yesterday. All work must be done here."
"That seems unnecessary."
"Those are the terms of your contract."
"What contract? I never signed anything."
Veronica appears beside us. "Actually, you did." She hands me a folder. "When you accepted the job yesterday, you agreed to our standard terms. It is all legal and binding."
I opened the folder. Pages and pages of small print. Legal words I do not understand. But at the bottom is my signature. When did I sign this?
"I never signed this."
"You signed the acceptance form when Janet Phillips called you," Veronica says. "Electronic signature. Very convenient."
I stare at the papers. Somewhere in all these words is a trap. I know it. But I cannot figure out what it is.
"I need to have a lawyer look at this."
"Of course," Ethan says. "But until then, you are bound by the terms. Which includes working here every day until the project is finished."
I feel trapped. Like a mouse in a maze with no way out.
"I need some air."
"Take your time," Ethan says. "Lunch break is in an hour. We can eat together and discuss your first assignments."
I walk to the ladies' room. I need a moment alone to think. To figure out what Veronica and her mysterious brother are planning.
But when I push open the bathroom door, someone is already there.
A woman with blonde hair stands at the mirror fixing her lipstick. She turns when she sees me.
It is not Veronica.
It is someone I have never seen before. Someone who looks familiar but I cannot place where I know her from.
"Isabella," the woman says. Her voice is warm but her eyes are cold. "I have been waiting to meet you."
"Do I know you?"
"Not yet. But you will." She puts her lipstick away and walks toward me. "My name is Rachel."
"Rachel who?"
"Rachel Cole. I think you know my brother."
My blood turns to ice. Cole. I heard that name somewhere recently.
"Your brother?"
"Adrian Cole. He works downtown. Handsome man. Architect. Very charming."
Adrian Cole. I do not know anyone by that name.
"I think you have me confused with someone else."
Rachel smiles. "Oh, I do not think so. You see, my brother has been watching you for weeks. He knows all about you. About Oliver. About your money problems."
How does she know about Oliver?
"I do not know what you are talking about."
"He is going to help you," Rachel says. "When Ethan breaks your heart again, Adrian will be there to pick up the pieces."
"I think you should leave."
"I am leaving. But Isabella, when you meet my brother, remember this conversation. Remember that some people are exactly what they seem to be. And some people are not."
Rachel walks past me toward the door. Then she stops.
"Oh, and Isabella? My brother is not the only one with a different last name than Veronica. Family is complicated sometimes."
She leaves me standing alone in the bathroom. My hands shake as I grip the sink.
Veronica's brother is named Cole, not Steele.
Adrian Cole.
And somehow, he has been watching me and Oliver.
I think about last night's phone call. "Trust me, brother. By the time this is over, Ethan Blackwell will lose everything."
Everything is connected. Veronica. Rachel. Adrian Cole. They
are all working together.
But working together to do what?
My phone buzzes. A text from an unknown number.
"Isabella, my name is Adrian Cole. I would like to meet you for coffee. I think we have a lot to talk about."