chapter 6: The man behind the threat

"And the food?" he asked.

Isabella blinked, "What food?"

"Tortilla Española."

She stared at him for a moment before remembering their conversation.

"You still want me to make it?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I asked you to."

Isabella pressed her lips together. He was impossible to read.

"Fine," she said.

"I'll prepare it."

Adrian nodded "Then we have the beginning of an agreement."

"The beginning?"

"We still have conditions to discuss." Isabella sat straighter.

"All right. What are your conditions?" Adrian held her gaze.

"First, I want the truth about the situation you're bringing me into.

Second, we establish exactly what this arrangement requires of both of us.

And third, neither of us makes promises we cannot keep."

Isabella considered his words, they were reasonable conditions, perhaps more reasonable than she had expected.

"Agreed."

Adrian extended his hand across the table,  Isabella looked at it briefly before shaking it, his grip was firm, and his expression remained unreadable.

****

That evening, Isabella returned to the restaurant with a strange mixture of relief and anxiety, she had taken the first step toward escaping Victor's control. Adrian had not promised to solve all her problems, but he had agreed to discuss an arrangement, for now, that was enough, she was reviewing the restaurant's accounts when her phone vibrated.

Another message, from Victor.

Her smile disappeared, the message contained a photograph Isabella opened it, It showed her sitting opposite Adrian at their meeting, her hand extended across the table as they shook hands. For several seconds, she couldn't move, Someone had been watching them, before she could think of an explanation, another message arrived.

You have an interesting taste in men, Isabella, Her fingers tightened around the phone.

A third message appeared. Tell your fiancé I look forward to meeting him. Isabella's heart sank.

Victor knew.

She looked around the restaurant, suddenly aware of every person passing by the windows.

How long had he been watching her? And how much had he discovered?

Her phone vibrated again, this time, Victor's message was shorter.

Enjoy your little arrangement while you can, Isabella stared at the screen.

For the first time since Adrian had agreed to help her, she wondered whether she had made the biggest mistake of her life, because if Victor Blackwell already knew about her supposed fiancé, he would not wait patiently for the wedding.

He would come looking for the man who had dared to stand between them, and Isabella had no idea what Victor would do when he found him.

*****

Isabella stared at her phone, reading Victor's message for the third time.

....Enjoy your little arrangement while you can...

Her fingers tightened around the device, how had he discovered Adrian so quickly?She had been careful.

Their meeting had taken place in a public location, and she hadn't told anyone about the details except Hannah, unless someone had followed her.

The thought made her glance toward the restaurant windows, customers sat at their tables, chatting and enjoying their meals.

Nadia moved between them with a tray, while the kitchen staff continued preparing orders, everything appeared normal.

Yet Isabella couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her.

"Isabella?" Hannah's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

She quickly locked her phone. "What?"

"You've been staring at that thing for ages. What did Victor say this time?"

"Nothing important."

Hannah narrowed her eyes."Don't lie to me."

Isabella hesitated before handing her the phone, Hannah read the messages, and her expression hardened.

"How does he know about Adrian?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"Did you tell anyone about your meeting?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

Isabella gave her a sharp look.

"Of course I'm sure, Hannah."

"I'm only asking because this is Victor we're talking about. He doesn't need an invitation to interfere in someone's life."

Isabella took back her phone."I know."

Hannah lowered her voice."What are you going to do?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"If I react every time Victor threatens me, he'll know he's getting to me."

"And if he does something worse?"

Isabella fell silent, that was the problem, she didn't know how far Victor was willing to go.

She had spent years protecting her family's business, working tirelessly to keep everything their parents had left behind from falling apart.

She had never imagined that Daniel's mistakes would eventually place her in a position where she would have to consider marrying a stranger to save it.

But she couldn't let fear make her decisions.

Not anymore.

She slipped her phone into her bag and returned to the accounts in front of her.

"I'll speak to Adrian," she said.

Hannah looked at her in disbelief.

"You're still going through with this?"

"I have to."

"Isabella, you barely know the man."

"Then I'll get to know him."

"And if he refuses to help?"

Isabella picked up her pen."Then I'll find another way."

Hannah sighed, clearly unconvinced.

"Sometimes I wonder where you get that stubbornness from."

Isabella managed a faint smile.

"Perhaps from my mother."The smile faded as quickly as it had appeared.

*****

Across the city, Adrian Valdez stood beside his desk, listening to his agent's report.

"Her name is Isabella Montoya," the man said.

"She manages a family restaurant in Montclair, her parents are deceased, and she has a younger sister and an older stepbrother."

Adrian remained silent.

"Her family has been experiencing financial difficulties. There are also reports of a dispute involving Victor Blackwell."

At the mention of that name, Adrian's expression changed slightly.

"Victor Blackwell?"

"Yes, sir."

Adrian walked to his desk and opened the folder his agent had brought.

"Explain."

"The details are incomplete, but it appears that Blackwell has a financial claim connected to the Montoya family's assets. There are rumors that he intends to marry Isabella."

Adrian turned a page.

"And she refused?"

"Apparently."

For several seconds, Adrian said nothing, then he closed the folder.

"Find out what connects Blackwell to her family. I want facts, not rumors."

"Understood."

The agent hesitated.

"Sir, may I ask why you're interested in this matter?"

Adrian lifted his eyes.

"Did I ask for your opinion?"

"No, sir."

"Then you have your instructions."

The agent immediately lowered his head.

"I'll look into it."

When the man had left, Adrian returned to the folder, he wasn't in the habit of involving himself in other people's affairs.

His own life contained enough complications without adding someone else's troubles to the list.

Yet Isabella's situation bothered him.

Not because she had asked him to become her groom, he could have dismissed that request as an impulsive decision made by a desperate woman.

What concerned him was the name she had mentioned.

Victor Blackwell.

Adrian had encountered powerful businessmen before, he understood how men with money and influence could use their positions to pressure others.

If Isabella's account was accurate, her supposed fiancé was not merely an inconvenient man she wished to avoid, he was someone who might threaten her future.

Adrian picked up his phone and looked at the business card lying beside it.

He could withdraw from the arrangement before it became complicated.

He had made no binding commitment, he could return to his business, complete the land inspection, and leave Montclair without looking back, It would be the sensible decision.

His phone rang before he could make it.

One of his agents was calling.

"Yes?"

"Sir, there's been a development."

Adrian waited.

"We discovered that Victor Blackwell has been making inquiries about you."