Chapter 0004

•ANTONIO•

I couldn't stop thinking about Isabella, even after she had left. I still thought of the way she moved around my office, and how she seemed immune to my charm.

Many women like her never hesitated to throw themselves at me, but she never did. She pretended as if I weren't the man running Atlanta.

"Antonio?" Cole nudged me on the shoulder, pulling me back to earth, and I cleared my throat before looking at him.

"Yeah?"

"Where's your mind, man? We've called girls to dance for us. You can make the first choice about who you want to take home."

"No," I replied as I stood up from the couch. "I have something to take care of downstairs. You gents can have all the fun to yourselves."

I slipped my cell phone out of my pocket and left. I couldn't stay there and watch strippers while Isabella was possessing all my thoughts.

Just when I was about to head outside to my car, my cell phone rang.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Rodriguez, this is Andrea Albero. I don't know what my daughter did, but I'd like to apologize on her behalf, and I assure you that tomorrow she will be back at work."

"She will be back at work?" I asked, confused.

I didn't understand what he meant since I had released Isabella earlier because I didn't want her presence to continue tempting me.

But hell, if she wanted to be away from me, then I needed to show her she could never run away from me. She would be mine.

“Andrea, you owe me half a million dollars. Do you remember that?”

“Yes, sir, I remember. And we made a deal that as long as my daughter worked in your club, you would deduct 30 percent from her salary.”

“Do you think that 3,000 bucks a month will ever be enough?”

“3,000? You can double it then, or take her entire salary. She can work for you for free.”

“To pay the six hundred thousand dollars that you owe, she will need to work at the club for 5 years without pay. Do you know that?”

“She can do that,” he replied. "She is yours."

“I have a better plan, Andrea. Do whatever it takes to bring her to the club. If you won’t, I will do it myself,” I said to him firmly.

“Yes, sir,” he answered without hesitation.

I hung up the call and went to my home office. I instructed my bodyguards to get everyone out of the club.

And when the club was finally empty, Andrea called and informed me that he was at the back door with her.

My bodyguards went to help him get Isabella inside and tied her to a chair at the podium.

She looked unconscious, and I figured Andrea must have drugged her.

“What did you do?” I asked him when he got to my side.

He hesitated for a second. “She will be awake in a moment, sir.”

“I hope you didn’t do anything to harm her,” I warned him, hoping she wasn't harmed.

“No, she’s fine,” he answered.

I nodded and watched as Melo finished tying her up on the chair.

This was the only way to make sure that she ended up being mine. If I failed to lure her in with flattery, perhaps this was going to work, and it had to.

"What’s going on? What are you going to do with her?" Andrea asked as I leaned against the bar counter, waiting for Isabella to flip those beautiful eyes open.

“You are auctioning your daughter,” I replied, keeping my eyes locked on her.

“What?” Andrea snapped.

“Relax, this will be equivalent to the number of years that she was supposed to work without pay at the club. I want her to be my wife for 5 years. The good thing for you is that you will be the one to get the money, and you won’t ever be indebted to me.”

He looked at me confused. “I don’t understand, sir.”

"What's there to understand when you've already sold her to me to repay your debt?" I looked at him. "So, this is my kindness to you. You will name your price, take the money, and leave Isabella as my wife."

Later, when the transaction was done, Andrea and I shook hands. Isabella was finally mine.

“Melo, release Bella and take her to my car. We are going home,” I instructed him as Andrea and I leaned toward the podium.

After Isabella was released, she walked toward us and stood before her father.

“I can’t believe you did this to me, Father. You just sold me off to a man you know very well would ruin my life,” she sneered.

And oh no, I would never break her. She was far too precious for me to even think of doing anything to hurt her.

She was my prized possession, and I was going to take good care of her.

I was only going to break anything and anyone who thought of hurting her or even those who bothered to lay a finger on her delicate skin.

“You have lost me as your daughter.” She looked between her father and me and then walked away with Melo to my car outside the alley.

"You will get every cent of your money before morning," I said to Andrea. "And don’t worry, I will take good care of her and she will never miss home," I chuckled as I walked to the back door and hopped into my car.

“Are you ready to go home, sweetheart?” I asked before I roared the engine to life.

Melo was in the passenger seat next to me, and the other Melo was sitting next to Isabella in the back.

Well, I called all my bodyguards ‘Melo’ because I didn’t have time to memorize their names, and I preferred to drive myself.

“Fuck you, Antonio,” Isabella hissed.

I rolled my eyes, looked forward, and started driving home.

I knew for sure that she was going to come around. She had to.