A Deal for Love

Isabella's POV

Today is the day I turned twenty-three. It didn't feel like much of a celebration to me. Birthdays had stopped meaning anything to me, when everything was the same, working double shifts at the coffee shop, paying my aunt for rent, saving every remaining dime for my mother's hospital bills and treatment.

"Isabella Duncan, if you don't get up from that bed, I swear to you I will drag you myself," my best friend Rose shouted and entered my room without knocking. My best friend had no respect for closed doors at all.

I murmured into my pillow and pulled the blanket over my head. "Rose, I'm so tired right now. I don't think I can go anywhere."

"You are always exhausted," she argued back, pulling the blanket away. 

"It's your twenty-third birthday. And you are not spending it thinking about the bills and your wicked aunt. Just for tonight, forget about the coffee shop, forget about Lucia, forget about everything. Just be selfish for one night."

The mention of my aunt made me clench my hand into fists. Lucia Bennet, my mother's sister, and the woman I lived with never let me forget how much of an inconvenience I was causing her. Every time I handed her the money I earned, she would look at me like it wasn't enough and needed more.

"And my mom?" I whispered, my eyes becoming glossy with tears. Sophie Duncan, my sweet mother and my whole world, was lying in a hospital bed battling with cancer and fighting for her life. The reason I worked tirelessly. The reason I never taught about luxury.

Rose's expression softened. "She would want you to take one night off and be happy, Isa. She would want you to breathe."

I looked away, guilt pressing down on me. "I can't just forget."

"Yes, of course," said Rose, her voice steady. So with a beautiful smile, she stretched her hand into the bag and pulled out a sleeveless short black dress, holding out for me.

 I almost choked. "That's... that's not a dress. That indecent exposure."

"This is what you call being sexy," Rose teased with a smirk.

"And you are wearing it. No arguments."

I opened my mouth to refuse, but my gaze slipped to the mirror. The girl looking back at me didn’t seem twenty-three anymore just tired, worn down. Too many late nights and too many hours in a coffee shop uniform had left me feeling like a stranger to myself.

Maybe Rose was right. Maybe I need to let loose just for tonight.

~

The club was alive, bussing with bass that vibrated through my bones. Lights flashed in blue and red colors, the air filled with various perfumes, sweat and freedom. I had never been the type for crowded places, but tonight, it didn't matter. Nothing did.

Rose showed me to the dance and I allowed the music to swallow me. For once, I was not the tired barista or the anxious girl. I was Just Isabella, laughing , shaking my body and being reckless. 

 Tequila burned my throat, but released the knot in my chest. We danced until I got tired and couldn't stop smiling. For a while I felt like I was finally living. 

 When I left the dance pavement to grab another drink, that was when I saw him. 

 Sitting near the bar, his presence has attracted my eyes like a magnet. It didn’t seem like he belonged here, not in that perfectly tailored suit, not with the way the room seemed to be in his control. Broad shoulders, chiseled jaw, black hair falling, enough to make him seem dangerous . 

 And he was looking at me and I still didn't bother to stop looking either. 

 I swallowed hard, trying not to stare, but when our eyes met I felt electricity pass through me.

I stayed at the bar and ordered two more shots.

"That's a lot for someone your size," a deep husky voice said from behind me.

I turned, and there he was in a dark suit, eyes boring into mine, like he could see through me.

"Maybe I like danger," I shot back.

His lips curved slightly. "Then let's drink to danger."

He raised his glass. I clicked mine against his, and we both downed the shot.

The burn hit, and I scrunch my face. "God, tequila is brutal."

He chuckled, low and warm. "It depends on who you drink with."

"Are you trying to say that you make tequila taste better?" I asked, clearly teasing. 

 "I'm saying I make everything and I mean everything taste better."

I rolled my eyes but I smiled. "Arrogant, aren't you?"

"Confident". I felt his gaze on me, slow and deliberate. "Big difference."

I shifted in my seat, warmth pooled low within me. To distract myself, I made a gesture toward his clothes. "So, what's your excuse for showing up at a club dressed up like you are going for a board meeting?"

He smirked. "And what's your excuse for wearing a dress that's clearly not yours?"

My jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"

"Don't misquote me," He said,his eyes filled with excitement . "You look gorgeous. But it's not yours. You kept on dragging the dress as if you are not used to it."

I laughed. "You got me, okay. Maybe my best friend forced me. She said it would make me look irresistible."

"She didn't lie though."

The words left his mouth smoothly, I almost forgot how to breathe.

I glanced away, trying to collect myself. "Are you always this charming with strangers at the bars?"

"Only the ones worth it."

The music blasted loudly around us, but it felt like it was just him and I in the room. His hand brushed against mine on the counter, slowly and deliberate, and I didn't pull away.

And found myself staring at him, couldn't stop wanting.

"Come with me," he said, his voice a little bit rougher now.

And I followed.

To one of the VIP rooms in the club.

The room was dim, the music from outside muted. He leaned against the wall staring at me with an intensity that made my knees weak.

"Do you want this?" He asked, making his way to me slowly.

I nodded, not trusting my voice.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked again, his voice rough with restraint. His eyes searched mine like he was giving me a chance to back out.

I should have thought of my mother, the money I needed, of how reckless this was. I should have thought of tomorrow.

But tonight wasn't tomorrow. It was about now and being reckless.

I closed the space between us, my heart racing. "Stop talking," I whispered slowly. "and kiss me."

His hand cupped my face, strong and firm, and then his lips claimed mine in a kiss that made my mind blank.

And I let it.