After Isabella had left, the room was quiet now, the air still smelled like perfume and sweat, the sheets were all over the place and Rafael sat right in the middle of the bed, with one hand resting on his knee while the other casually held something red and lacy between two fingers. He stared at it with a smug little smile pulling at the corner of his mouth,
The bedroom door creaked open again and Niko stepped in, already raising a brow the second he caught sight of Rafael sitting there looking too damn satisfied,
Niko scanned the room, then his eyes dropped to the red thing in Rafael's hand,
"Hello, brother," Niko said, "You've had quite the eventful night."
Rafael didn't even look up at first, just gave the smallest chuckle and twirled the fabric with two fingers,
"Eventful indeed."
Niko took a slow step forward, looking at the red lace,
"What is that?" he asked,
Rafael finally glanced up, smiling that lazy, dangerous smile of his,
"A souvenir."
Niko blinked, then walked up to him and snatched the fabric from his hand, he held it up, tilted his head, saw the tiny cursive embroidery stitched near the waistband, "IF"
"Are those initials?"
"Yep," Rafael said, still sounding amused, "IF, Stands for Isabella Faulkner."
Niko's head snapped up,
"Wait—Isabella Faulkner? As in Victor Faulkner's niece?"
Rafael nodded slowly, like he was waiting for Niko to catch up,
"The same Victor Faulkner who owes you over two million in unpaid debt?"
"The very one."
Niko looked back down at the lace in his hand, then back at Raphael,
"You're not serious," he said,
"Oh, I'm very serious," Rafael replied, stretching his arms behind his head, relaxed as hell, "I think we might have found our candidate for BRIDE."
Niko's jaw clenched, "Do you want me to get her now? She can't have gotten far."
Rafael grinned,
"No, brother," he said, "Patience."
Niko gave him one last look, then shook his head and laughed once under his breath.
"You're a lunatic."
Rafael leaned back against the headboard,
"Maybe," he giggled.
───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────
Back to Isabella, she had just gotten home, she pushed the door open slowly and stepped inside, the house was so quiet she figured everyone was still asleep, she took a deep breath and tiptoed her way in, hoping she could sneak past the living room and run upstairs to her room without being seen,
But then she heard a voice that made her stomach twist in fear,
"Where were you?"
She froze and her soul left her body, she slowly turned around, her mouth opened just a little as she whispered, "mum—"
"Don't call me that," her mum cut her off, "where were you all night and why didn't you come home you silly prostitute," she added,
Isabella's eyes dropped to the floor, tears welled up in her eyes and her heart sank, her chest felt tight and she wanted to disappear, because those words, they hit her so hard and worse, they made sense, she hated herself for what she did last night and hearing her mother say it out loud just made it worse, she didn't talk back, didn't say a word, she just stood there with her head down and lips pressed together because she had nothing to defend herself with;
Her mum kept going, yelling louder, calling her names, screaming insults, calling her useless and shameless and ungrateful, blaming her for everything, saying she was nothing but a waste of space,
Isabella just stood there with her head bowed down, tears welling in her eyes but she didn't cry, not yet, she just let all of her mother's words hit her, she waited until her mum was finally done and when the house went quiet again,
she looked up a little and said softly, "I'm sorry for being such a nuisance to you, I have a job interview today and I'll work hard and be out of your hair"
Her mum didn't reply, she just stepped closer and spat on her face, right there, and then walked away like Isabella wasn't even human,
Isabella didn't wipe it immediately, she just stood there for a second, and then she slowly turned around and walked up the stairs, her legs shaking and her heart felt like it had just been stepped on, she didn't say anything, didn't curse, didn't cry out loud, just kept walking like a zombie until she reached her room,
She shut the door behind her and leaned against it, slid down to the floor and hugged her knees, and for the first time since morning, she let the tears fall, not just for what happened last night but for this life she was stuck in, for the pain that never seemed to leave her, for the way she hated herself and this house and everything that reminded her she wasn't wanted,
She felt dirty, tired and broken, and worst of all, she didn't know how to get out of this life that made her feel so miserable,
Although, she had a Job interview later that day at Voss Pharmaceuticals, it gave her hope and for the first time in a while, she felt like she had a chance at making a living for herself and finally being under HER OWN jurisdiction, what Isabella didn't know was that she was going to apply for a job at a company that was owned by the man she just had a one night stand with.