Chapter Ten
“How…How could you do this?” Bella says through her sobbing. My heart is breaking in a thousand pieces. Money can’t fix this problem. I’m at risk of losing my daughter, Willow. My own best friend and life as I know it. You are only as good as the company you keep and at this rate I’m afraid I won’t have any.
“Bella, darling. Listen to me,” I say inching towards her. Poor Willow is lost for words as is everyone.
“No, I’m not going to! You’re sick. She’s like my age! She’s my friend.” Bella lowers her eyes, “Or used to be.”
I walk all the way up to her to try and break her out of that dangerous gaze towards Willow.
“Bella, I didn’t want anything to end this way.” I put my arms on her shoulders, trying to get her eye contact back on me. She throws my hands off of her and backs up, completely disgusted at me and what I’ve done.
“Don’t you dare try to act like my father now. Was this your whole plan all along? To fuck my friend? Or was it yours Willow?”
Tears pour from Willow’s face. Terrified about her whole life coming down in front of her.
“Bella, I swear, I didn’t mean to hurt you. And Mr. Gold didn’t do this like that either. It just happened.”
Bella slowly begins walking over to Willow before she bolts and launches her body to attack her.
The two fall on the floor and I run over to break them up. Arms and legs flail in the air and Willow breaks down, barely defending herself.
“Bella, stop this childish behavior right now!” I yell, pulling her off of Willow. I try to hug her to get her to stop, but she stomps one of my feet and bolts for the door.
“I should have stayed with Mom. Fuck both of you!”
Bella storms out and Willow pops up on her feet, wiping her tears off her face.
I can only imagine she’s going straight to Mr. Roman to cause more havoc.
“This is all my fault,” Willow sobs, heading for the door. I grab her arm gently.
“No, it’s mine. I’m the adult here—”
“We both are.”
“Still, I’m older, the more wiser one. The blame is on me.”
Willow sighs and leaves the room. I drag myself to the office. I have work to do and I need to see if I can call Bella and make sure she’s okay and not off doing something stupid.
***
Nothing. No one is answering their damn phones. Not Willow, Bella, or Roman. Bella must have left her track-able phone behind because the last address that shows up is this one.
Rrring. Rrring.
It’s Ms. Chevelle. For a moment I feel like ignoring the call. This isn’t a time for giddiness. But then I remember there’s a thief in my company and hesitantly answer the phone.
“Ms. Chevelle, make this quick please.”
“Whoa, such the grump today. Well, good news. The crook bit the bait and is going down! He was too damn greedy for his own good,” she giggles.
“Is there a name?”
“Mr. Sean. Trelon Sean.”
After all that has happened, the last thing I want to know is that my Vice President is stealing from me.
“I want him gone. In jail for life.”
“He’s been detained,” Ms. Chevelle says proudly.
“How…How could you do this?” Bella says through her sobbing. My heart is breaking in a thousand pieces. Money can’t fix this problem. I’m at risk of losing my daughter, Willow. My own best friend and life as I know it. You are only as good as the company you keep and at this rate I’m afraid I won’t have any.
“Bella, darling. Listen to me,” I say inching towards her. Poor Willow is lost for words as is everyone.
“No, I’m not going to! You’re sick. She’s like my age! She’s my friend.” Bella lowers her eyes, “Or used to be.”
I walk all the way up to her to try and break her out of that dangerous gaze towards Willow.
“Bella, I didn’t want anything to end this way.” I put my arms on her shoulders, trying to get her eye contact back on me. She throws my hands off of her and backs up, completely disgusted at me and what I’ve done.
“Don’t you dare try to act like my father now. Was this your whole plan all along? To fuck my friend? Or was it yours Willow?”
Tears pour from Willow’s face. Terrified about her whole life coming down in front of her.
“Bella, I swear, I didn’t mean to hurt you. And Mr. Gold didn’t do this like that either. It just happened.”
Bella slowly begins walking over to Willow before she bolts and launches her body to attack her.
The two fall on the floor and I run over to break them up. Arms and legs flail in the air and Willow breaks down, barely defending herself.
“Bella, stop this childish behavior right now!” I yell, pulling her off of Willow. I try to hug her to get her to stop, but she stomps one of my feet and bolts for the door.
“I should have stayed with Mom. Fuck both of you!”
Bella storms out and Willow pops up on her feet, wiping her tears off her face.
I can only imagine she’s going straight to Mr. Roman to cause more havoc.
“This is all my fault,” Willow sobs, heading for the door. I grab her arm gently.
“No, it’s mine. I’m the adult here—”
“We both are.”
“Still, I’m older, the more wiser one. The blame is on me.”
Willow sighs and leaves the room. I drag myself to the office. I have work to do and I need to see if I can call Bella and make sure she’s okay and not off doing something stupid.
***
Nothing. No one is answering their damn phones. Not Willow, Bella, or Roman. Bella must have left her track-able phone behind because the last address that shows up is this one.
Rrring. Rrring.
It’s Ms. Chevelle. For a moment I feel like ignoring the call. This isn’t a time for giddiness. But then I remember there’s a thief in my company and hesitantly answer the phone.
“Ms. Chevelle, make this quick please.”
“Whoa, such the grump today. Well, good news. The crook bit the bait and is going down! He was too damn greedy for his own good,” she giggles.
“Is there a name?”
“Mr. Sean. Trelon Sean.”
After all that has happened, the last thing I want to know is that my Vice President is stealing from me.
“I want him gone. In jail for life.”
“He’s been detained,” Ms. Chevelle says proudly.
“Good…”
“Mr. G. What’s going on now… I don’t hear the usual alpha male in you today.”
“Bella came home at the wrong time…”
Ms. Chevelle’s instincts are right on point. She gasps, knowing exactly what I mean. I bury my forehead in the palm of my hand.
My doorbell rings. When I look at the camera, I see Mr. Roman, and my nightmares slowly come true.
“My god. That’s gonna be one hell of a mess. But don’t worry Mr. G. You’ll do fine. I know you will.”
“Let’s hope so. Check back with me later, I have a visitor.”
We hang up and I let Mr. Roman through. Anxiously, I wait in my office for him to burst through the doors and fight me. After all, I would do the same if I found out some old man was having sexual relations with my daughter. I wouldn’t stop to think about if they truly cared deeply for one another, or loved one another.
Mr. Roman walks calmly through my office’s double doors without knocking. I lean back in my chair, ready to embrace an understandable wrath.
“Bella visited me. She’s a mess. I do hope you’re having someone follow her.”
“I’ve called my men to watch her. Someone’s always watching her.”
Silence passes between us. Roman’s gray eyebrows are pushed down in the center.
“So, you’re sleeping with my daughter. What in the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Mr. Roman’s voice thunders, his anger being held back apparently.
“Maverick. Listen to me. I’ve always loved having Willow around. I never meant anything inappropriate—”
“You fucked my daughter, you damn well better give me something more solid than your condolences!”
I stand to my feet, I’m not going to let everyone drop around me. I am more dominant than that.
“All right, I love her. It just happened. But I’ll be damned if I let any harm come to her. You know that. As my friend, one of the few, very few I have.”
His shoulders start to drop slightly, a sign that I might have just cleared a lot of the smoke in the air.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Maverick turns around, about to leave until I stop him for one last bout of words.
“Maverick. I swear I’ll do good by her. Please, let her know I’m worried about her. And please don’t stop being my friend.”
It takes a second for him to respond.
But he does.
“I will. And don’t worry,” he turns around, “I’m not going to shun you off or anything. Bella tried to flirt with me too a couple of times. She just didn’t know my preference lies somewhere else. Does that scare you?”
“Not at all. Bella tried to… oh goodness, no wonder she’s upset. This is all too much for her. Thank you, Maverick.”
“Of course.”
Bella and I have a lot of talking to do. I call my guards and find out that they have located her at a bar. It’s going to be a messy scene, but I order them to bring her home.