From time to time I steal glances over the transparent vase of flowers sitting on my office desk, and a smile betrays my plan to pretend they don’t mean a thing to me. I still can't believe that Adrian Castle has actually done this romantic-like gesture from miles away, and to be sure, I text Camilla who doesn't respond instantly, but returns my call about three hours later when I'm having lunch in the cafeteria.

“Did you send me the flowers on his behalf?” I ask her, still smiling. 

I'm almost convinced she's the one who made it possible to have the roses delivered in my office.

But to my surprise, Camilla says, “Flowers? What flowers?”

“The one I received today from Adrian?” I frown, attentively waiting for her reply.

“I swear I'm only hearing this from you, Ara. I had absolutely no idea about it because he didn't ask me to take care of such an important task which is new!” She sounds amazed.

And so am I.

“Oh?” I reply, eyes on one of the huge flatscreens perched on the cafeteria sides; some music video mingled with employees' mundane clamor in the air. “Well, I guess he did it all by himself somehow, which is… new, I guess, as you just said. Anyways, how is it over there? Anything interesting?”

I'm curious to hear about her situation in Italy now that she's almost close to the man she once felt something toward, whatever the name is. I wonder if she's met Falcon already, and what followed afterward.

“Nothing much.” The wind blows at her end of the line, as if she's in a moving car or something. “I'm on my way to meet Adrian right now so we can go on with the business that brought us here. He stayed at his family home last night to look after Roberto.”

I frown again, asking, “Why? Did something happen to Roberto?”

“He wasn't feeling well, apparently, and a lot had been going on with Falcon and the other brothers.” She pauses and sighs. “Things are still hectic around here, but I don't have all the details. You know, it's all family-related and I’m not part of it so I’m just hanging around trying to do my job.”

Damn! That's something.

“Um, okay. I'll leave you to it then,” I reply, smiling at Tatiana, the charming receptionist, heading my way while holding her lunch tray.

The cafeteria is not vast, but the food service is a topnotch. It's always a buffet with unlimited everything for everyone. The seatings are immaculate white plush chairs with wooden tables big enough to accommodate four to six people per table, and it feels like home with the TVs running full time for anyone who needs a recess.

“Mind if I join you?” She grins expectantly, eyeing me and my table in turns.

“Not at all,” I say with a warm smile, and back to Camilla I utter, “I'm gonna pick Jake later today. I don't know what the hell will happen next when he finds out about everything but I just wanna see him and hug him.”

“Aw, I'm sure he misses you too and he'll eventually come around,” Camilla answers and we say our goodbyes not long after.

“A boyfriend coming?” Straightforward, Tatiana pries about my conversation with Camilla which leaves me on the crossroad as to whether she’s being friendly or nosy.

I grin anyway, placing my phone on the table before replying, “A brother of mine. He's on summer break from Stanford.”

I'm so proud of him that I wish I could brag to the whole world about his existence as part of the Lincoln trio. But I stop at that.

“Stanford? Oh, wow! He sounds like a smart one,” Tatiana enthuses, taking a forkful of fish steak dipped in a sauce and some spinach leaves.

“You have no idea.” I rejoice inwardly before my eyes clash with Erlington's who has just walked into the cafeteria in the company of a blonde woman, the HR Manager who interviewed me. 

His eyes linger but he keeps it professional, and I thank God for it. I ignore his presence altogether the second Tatiana asks about where I live, and just like that, we delve into a casual conversation while enjoying our lunch. But at the back of mind, I'm just thinking of Adrian and Jake and everything that's more important in my life than this moment here in the office.

Jake's plane will land at seven so I wind up my busy day at work and flash a call to Mario so he can pick me up as early as he can. Luckily, he wastes no time arriving at Hi-Five as though he was just around the corner waiting for me. I smile gratefully at him as he holds the backdoor open for me while asking about my day. Strangely it makes me miss Adrian because he'd be asking the same question right now if he were here.

“It was hectic but good,” I answer Mario while slipping into a seat. “Thank you.” Again, I smile sweetly at him.

“My pleasure.” He smiles back, revealing his friendly version that's rare to find given his constant straight face full of professionalism.

As the engine purrs, my eyes fall onto the screen of my phone where Adrian's third message of the day has just chimed in. I've ignored the other two, including a call from him about thirty minutes ago, and I believe it's enough to show him that I’m still mad and I never appreciated what happened last night and he can never treat me like a property.

*Will you please quit this childish game, Arabella? If you are that angry with me can you just tell me with words? Please pick my damn call, for Christ's sake!

“Just words? You wish,” I whisper, smothering a laugh.

I dare say I do enjoy riling him up, but yeah, it is childish and maybe I can graduate from the kindergarten for just one day and listen to him. I lean back in my seat, getting comfortable, and dial back his number that rings only twice before I hear his gentle hello from the other side.

“The flowers, the chocolates, the calls... I must admit you are trying too hard to get my attention—here, you have it. What do you want, Adrian?” I ask him right away, curious.

My gaze meets Mario’s eyes fleetingly over the rearview mirror, but he quickly resumes his attention to the road.

I hear Mr. Control freak sigh softly through the phone before he says, “I only wanted to apologize, Arabella.”

“That much was clear with the note in the flowers,” I retort. “But what's the catch?”

In other words, I'm eager to know the real reason behind this pursuit of reconciliation between us. For someone who doesn't want me romantically, or in his life as his woman, that move seems unnecessary and a waste of time.

“And don't talk about that annoying keeping-me-safe speech of yours, or that I'm your goddamn responsibility, because its getting old, Adrian, and I'm sick and tired of it,” I add as he hesitates to answer, knowing fully well that it's his usual point of defense to justify being around me in any way he can. “Tell me what it is that you want so we can put the records straight,” I utter firmly, eager for an answer that will probably alter nothing in the end.

After all, everything about our relationship is clear enough. Or so I believe.

“I don't want you with him,” Adrian replies dryly.

“Excuse me?” I squint my eyes, ignoring the panoramic view of Manhattan the more Mario cascades the car through the Grand Central Parkway on our way to Queens.

Him who? Erlington?

“I think I made a huge mistake,” he says, adding more to my confusion, “and I'm going to fix it at any cost. I can't stand him near you, not even the thought of it, Arabella. It drives me nuts; I can't even concentrate here as I should because of that!” 

I take a brisk sigh, biting my lip frustratedly while throwing my gaze outside through the window.

“Is that an apology or your big male ego talking?” I snap in a quiet voice. “If you can't have me then no one else can, isn't that right? Because you were just fine a few days ago but all of a sudden you’ve turned into this frustrated John Doe just because I went out with a man who's not you.”

“Arabella—”

“You know what, Adrian?” I cut him off. My fingers reach for the bridge between my closed eyes and I swallow slightly while rubbing it. “I'm done with this! I'm seriously tired of this shit. I gave you so many chances to fix your mistake, if you even consider it as one, but you made your intentions very clear each time so…” My voice trails off from either anger or pain and all I can do is just take a sharp breath to beat away the tears gathering in my eyes.

Knowing there's Mario in the car, I open my eyes, forcing myself to remain civil and composed. I can't let my private feelings be known by him, and much less spill about my personal affairs with his boss even if there's nothing to hide given that he knows a lot already by being Adrian's right hand man since our time in Las Vegas up to now.

“I'm on my way to pick Jake,” I tell Adrian smoothly, “so maybe we could hold this conversation for another time.”

“I'll call you later then,” he replies, and like a fool there's a part of me that still wants to hear his voice a little longer.

I want and despise him at the same time, isn't that insane? I think we're both insane.

“Sure.” I hang up and drop my head low toward the window, contemplating about him and his ability to enslave my body, heart, and soul.

I miss being with him and every inch of him. Even right at this moment with anger searing through me, I wish he was here with me, holding my hand, tantalizing my body with the tips of his fingers trailing over my skin in a playful yet powerful manner. I’m longing for his kisses, embraces, and the wild sex we used to have in different forms.

My clit pulsates at the memory of the kinky world he introduced me to, and my thighs slam each other when I marvel at everything we could've done tonight if we had one more chance of being together in that bedroom or playroom of his. What would our lives be if I had him in mine and I in his, fully without restraints?

However, when I think of what he has made me go through, whether forcibly or out of his own will, and the core reason why I'm in New York City in the first place, my heart hardens and the desire to pay him back intensifies. He has to feel what I felt each and every time he emotionally bruised me with his cruel rejections regardless of his pure intention.

____

Jake Lincoln appears at the Arrivals curb after thirty minutes of waiting at the JFK Airport. Despite the hive of ongoing activities and typical noise of such a busy international airport, I manage to wave and yell my brother's name to claim his attention that's already on me. He frowns, probably embarrassed, but I don't give it a shit because I missed him that much.

“Oh, you look like a man now!” I tease him over a tight hug.

He shrieks—typical Jake Lincoln—before he blurts, “Do we really have to do this here?” while reluctantly hugging me back with one arm.

“Of course!” I pull back to inspect him closely and my smile widens at the look of his toned face, the baby fat almost gone. “You've been working out? Did you get yourself a girlfriend too? Will you introduce me to her?”

“Ew, no, quit that!” He brushes me off.

“Oh, come on!” I keep on messing with him, and when his smoldering hazel eyes squint dismissively at me, I burst into a mirthful laughter.

He's changed a little. Maybe it's a haircut, the high-low trim of his usually fluffy raven strands. He's grown a bit of chest and arms muscles too, and he looks taller, a few inches higher than me, albeit I'm elevated by heels. He’s wearing his usual: a pair of black jeans, an unbuttoned flannel shirt coupled with an immaculate white T-shirt underneath, and white sneakers.

Honestly, he's more of a handsome college boy now, the kind where pretty young girls can have an instant crush on before he can even open his mouth to speak a few words. Like all the youths nowadays, he has white Airpods attached in one ear, a backpack hanging to his one shoulder, and a small suitcase that Mario is already fetching while smiling subtly at our little siblings fiasco.

“It’s been a while, little man. How are you?” Mario greets him as he rises up with the suitcase.

Jake's gaze sweeps over him and it jogs up his memory rather quickly. His face contorts when he looks at me questioningly, his hand firmer on the strap of his backpack.

“Isn't he working for him?” he asks, his voice stern on that 'him'.

I exhale softly through my nose, for this is the part where I must explain myself.

“Yeah, he does. And there's something you should know before we go,” I reply truthfully.

“It’s best you two talk in the car,” Mario suggests, and when I look him in the eyes that speak more, I immediately understand that he wants us away from the public as soon as possible.

I don't argue with him, even though I'm sure my incorrigible little brother is mentally rolling his eyes with this unexpected companionship. So we exit the airport and slip into the backseat of the car. The evening has shadowed the sky with a canopy of stars twinkling faintly, and it's a bit hotter today compared to the past few days.

“So what’s going on here?” Jake starts, and I hear the car trunk shut; Mario is still outside dealing with the suitcase. “And wait, where is Isla?”

“She's at home. I mean, Adrian's home... it's where we're staying at the moment.” I don't know why I feel like I’m a suspect here but I guess I owe him this clarification considering how things are.

Confusion creeps over Jake's flawless face and his beardless jaw tightens.

He snorts and says, “Wait, why? You said you got a place and now you're staying at your ex-boyfriend's house? What the hell does that even mean?”

“We do have a place but something happened last week. There was a break in, a burglary or something and that's how we ended up in Adrian's house.”

“What?” He's getting more confused by the minute. “And you didn’t bother telling me about that? Is Isla okay?”

Goodness gracious! I sigh exhaustely.

“No one got hurt and nothing was stolen thankfully,” I reply, concealing some facts I'm yet to discover myself about that disturbing incident. “Adrian is in Italy so we're only staying over there until he returns.”

“No, I'm not,” Jake answers simply.

I scoff, staring at him sideways. If there was a choice, I'd let him stay wherever he chooses to stay since he’s an adult now but right now I want all of us together because we are family, and mostly, because it's the only way to keep everyone safe.

“Oh you are, sweetheart. You are not staying away from us now that you are here after all this time.”

“I can't live at his house!” Jake argues. “How do you even do it? Are you two back together?”

“No, we are not. But there's someone else living there and I promised to take care of her until Adrian comes back so I'm not gonna back out from that,” I tell him, hoping to get some sense into his thick skull.

“And who's that?” he asks, and Mario gets behind the driving wheel at the same time, shutting the car door afterwards.

“Her name is Reece. She's Adrian's young sister and she's almost your age so don't worry about babysitting her.” I decide to leave no more room for surprise.

“Great! Another girl in the house,” Jake murmurs.