Chapter 3: The Mansion home and a Warning

~Isabel~

When she used that formal title, "The Master," I knew right away this would not be an easy stay.

I sat at on the bed flipped open my laptop to check my student email before heading downstairs. A red alert popped up on the screen from the university office.

WARNING: Tuition balance of £3,000 is due in exactly seven days. Failure to pay will result in immediate cancellation of your admission.

Seeing that deadline made my chest feel heavy. I shut the laptop fast, splashed cold water on my face, and headed down to face whatever this new life had in store.

The dining room glowed bright under a huge crystal chandelier.

Arthur Sterling sat at the head of the long table, laughing loud at something my mother had just said. He looked exactly like his pictures: silver streaks at his temples, black suit, and that easy confidence that only comes when you own more money than most people could ever dream of.

My mother looked like a total stranger. She had left her old self behind, wrapped up in a deep red dress and a diamond necklace that glittered every time she moved. She looked like she had belonged here her whole life.

"Bel! There you are!" She jumped up from her chair and kissed my cheek right away. I caught the scent of her perfume, rose oil, not the vanilla lotion I remembered from home.

"Arthur, this is my Isabel."

Arthur stood up with a smile. His eyes looked kind but they studied me closely like he was figuring out exactly what I was worth to his family.

"Welcome to London, Isabel. I hope the flight wasn't too rough for you?"

"It was fine. Thank you, Mr. Sterling. For all of this."

"None of that formal stuff here. Call me Arthur. Come sit. We are just waiting for my son to join us..."

The big doors swung open behind me.

All at once, the warm room felt colder, and a rich scent of men's cologne filled the air.

"You're late," Arthur said, though he didn't sound angry.

"Meetings ran over at the office."

That deep voice jolted me. I turned on my seat to see who it was.

There he stood. The guy from the café back home!

He looked intimidating still.

He pulled off his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves slowly, then stopped dead right there in the doorway.

For a split second, I saw it. A flicker of recognition in his dark eyes. He knew exactly who I was, the clumsy girl who spilled coffee all over his date.

Then his face went blank and unreadable.

"William," Arthur said, not noticing the change tension between us. "You remember I told you about Sarah’s daughter, Isabel? She starts her internship with you Monday morning."

His eyes moved over me, from my face, down to the simple floral dress I wore, all the way to my shoes. It wasn't a kind look. He stared like he had just found something messy he didn't want anywhere near him.

He stepped close to the table.

"I remember her," he murmured. "The girl who couldn't hold a tray."

He brushed his shoulder hard on mine as he walked past, just enough to knock me off balance a little, then sat right across from me. He kept his eyes locked on my face while he spoke to his father.

"I didn't realize the Mayfield girl came as part of the wedding deal."

"William, be nice," my mother said with a fake laugh touching her necklace nervously.

"Isabel is very smart. She will be a huge help to you at the office."

William leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers steadily on the table.

"Is she really? Because everyone who works for me pulls their own weight. They don't just show up to spend my father's money."

"That is enough," Arthur cut in.

The rest of dinner felt forced and pretentious.

I stared down at my plate, my throat so tight I could barely swallow even one bite.

William watched me the whole time. He noticed every time I bit my lip or clenched my hands in my lap, like he was just waiting for me to mess up again.

"So Isabel," he said, cutting through whatever my mother was saying. "Tell me. What exactly do you plan to do in my department?"

That was it.

The patience I had been holding onto snapped right then. I set my fork down slowly and looked him in the eye.

"I plan to work hard there," I replied. "I don't want any easy way from your family. I came here to do the job, and I will earn every single penny, Mr. Sterling."