Page 3 of Timeless Pages
“Isabella has been running the store alongside Jason, but now that he’s gone, it’s simply too much for her to handle alone. Isn’t that right, Isabella?” Father squeezed my arm harder when I didn’t immediately agree with him.
“Umm, yes, that’s correct,” I replied dutifully. I knew how to play this game and knew nothing was more critical to Father than his image. He'd punish me if I weren’t one hundred percent convincing, so I also added what I hoped was a convincing smile.
How has my life reverted to the way it used to be so quickly? I thought I had escaped this, yet here I was, participating in the familiar dance of my childhood where every nuance of my expression, word, and movement would be calculated todetermine how much I embarrassed him and, therefore, needed to pay with my blood. I felt myself slip back into the old me and wanted to throw up as the familiar anxiety grew in the pit of my stomach in anticipation of my subsequent punishment.
Nathan kept staring at me with his cold blue eyes, which added to my discomfort. Why wouldn’t he look away? I felt like he could see right to my soul—that everything I was laid bare to him. I didn’t like it. What’s more, I knew my father wouldn’t either.
“A pretty thing like you shouldn’t be hidden away in a dusty old bookstore,” Dominic teased, his green eyes twinkling with mischief. I recognized the blond-haired playboy more easily than I had his partners because every other day, his picture was splashed across the front page of every paper in Sunflower Falls for whatever latest scandalous dalliance he was involved in.
Even if I might not have recognized the other two on the street, I knew who they were. The three owned DEN Tower Corporation, a real estate conglomerate that owned most of Sunflower Falls’ business district and every other property on my block. When I saw the for-sale sign, I knew they would be the first to show up here. They had been after this place for years and might just succeed.
I barely held back a hiss as Father’s hand tightened even more. He didn’t appreciate Dominic flirting with me, even though I had no control over it, nor had I encouraged it in any way.
“Isabella, don’t you have something more suited to your abilities to do?” Father asked. “I need to conduct some business now, which would confuse you.”
I gritted my teeth at his condescension. It would never occur to him that I wasn’t a blithering idiot incapable of stringing more than five words together. It never occurred to him that I ran the bookstore and did the books. That’s ok. Let him underestimate me. That way, he’ll never see me coming.
I forced myself to smile as I excused myself. “I do need to take care of some things. Have a nice day,” I said. I tried to turn and walk away, but Father’s hold on me remained ironclad. When I looked up at him in confusion, he smiled in a way that likely appeared to be doting. He bent down a little to present his cheek to me. I knew what he wanted. I had forgotten that we used to play a little game where he would force me into public displays of affection, so that I would look and act like the loving daughter I was supposed to be.
I stretched up and kissed his cheek without letting my disgust show, and as soon as I did, he released me. I quickly turned away from them and put as much distance between us as possible as I rubbed my aching arm. I escaped to my quarters and dug out the list of lawyers I had hidden there. I needed to start fighting the conservatorship before it was too late to save the store or myself.
Chapter four
Evan
Iwatched Isabella run off like her ass was on fire. I, of course, had known who she was. I spent more time than I would ever admit lurking among the bookshelves, watching her. She never noticed me and didn’t recognize me now, but I knew her. She was the main reason I wanted to keep it a bookstore, hoping she would return to visit from time to time. My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I frowned when I saw a text message from Nathan to our group chat.
Nathan
I don’t like the way she changed when he walked in. Did you see her flinch when he touched her? Evan, we’ll keep him distracted. You track her down and see if you can find out more information.
“Would it be possible for me to look around?” I asked Morris Wilcox.
Morris didn’t look like he wanted to say yes, but I didn’t wait for an answer as I headed down one of the aisles. I knew there was a door that Isabella often went through, which I assumed was the office, and I hoped that was where she had gone. It was opposite from where I was heading, but I knew I could skirt around the back.
“You aren’t allowed to buy any more books!” Dom shouted after me. “That one is a real book nerd. Personally, I don’t get it,” Dom said as he placed his arm around Morris’ shoulders and turned him away from me to force the man’s attention to himself. “Why read about someone else’s adventures when you could go out and make your own? Am I right?”
I stopped at the end of the aisle, pulled a book off the shelf, and pretended to read the blurb on the back while watching them out of the corner of my eyes.
“Uhh, sure,” Morris said, craning his neck around to watch me, “that sounds like good words to live by.”
“Can we start talking business?” Nathan asked. “We have somewhere to be soon.” I scoffed under my breath. We didn’t have anywhere to be. I was honestly surprised by just how much interest he was taking in Isabella. He didn’t usually care much about anyone outside of us. The fact that he was showing so much interest in Isabella had my hopes up that maybe we might have found our girl. At the very least, we might have found someone all three of us found attractive. It was a start.
Morris’ attention quickly shifted to Nate at the mention of business, and I used that moment to replace the book and slip out of sight. I followed the wall to the back of the store and rapped my knuckles against the door several times before opening it.
“Do you mind?” Isabella asked, whirling to face me, clutching a scrap of paper. She stood near the little kitchenette against the wall. Further past that, I saw a cozy little bed just big enough forher. A small TV was mounted on the wall, where a two-person table sat. There were two doors to my right, which I assumed must be a private bathroom and a closet. She lived here!
“Oh shit. I’m sorry!” I said quickly when I realized it wasn’t an office. I entered the room and shut the door behind me. “I thought this was an office and wanted to talk to you.”
“And yet, you’re still here,” she replied.
I looked at her closer and saw that her brown eyes were now red-rimmed. “Why have you been crying?” I growled.
Chapter five
Isa
Ihated letting people see me cry, and I definitely didn’t want Evan to see me crying. “Why do you care?” I asked. “You’re one of the heartless men trying to take my home away from me. It’s my store, and I should have a say in whether it is sold.”
