Page 15

“I never wanted to lie to you, Isla.” You mean a lot to me, and the last thing I want to do is put our relationship at risk.
Isla stopped and looked up at him, confused.
“Our relationship?”
Kade smiled a little and bent down to sit on the sand with her.
“Yes, baby. Our connection.
He put their fingers together again and stroked the back of her hand.
Isla turned red at what he said, but she didn’t say anything.
“I don’t want you to lie to me anymore,” she said after a moment.
Kade shook his head and pulled the blonde close to him.
“I promise I won’t, baby.”
“You’re supposed to keep the eggshells out of the bowl silly,” Isla said with a laugh as she picked up the shells that had fallen into the egg yolk.
“Sorry baby, I’m not very good at this,” Kade said with a sigh as he leaned back against the counter.
The couple was on the road to recovery two weeks after the ordeal.
Isla had forgiven Kade for not picking her up from work that day, but she still had trouble trusting him, which is one of the most important parts of a relationship.
Kade had promised her that he would never lie to her again. She wanted to believe him, but she knew that actions speak louder than words. She would have to see for herself if he kept his word, and only time would tell if he did.
Isla wiped her hands on the kitchen towel and smiled to herself.
He was the one who offered to help her make the brownies, but sadly, it looked like baking wasn’t the tattooed man’s thing.
“It’s okay, Kade. No one is good at everything.”
Kade’s eyes softened and a small smile appeared on his lips as he listened to what the little girl said. Instead of answering, he turned around and threw a handful of flour at Isla, who wasn’t expecting it.
Isla gasped and looked up at the tall man in shock. Then she smiled and threw some icing sugar back at him.
They took turns laughing and giggling until the whole kitchen was covered in the brownie ingredients. Kade came up behind Isla and tickled her sides.
“Look at the mess you’ve made”
Isla suddenly turned and pointed an accusing finger at him, “Me?! You threw flour at me, mister!”
Kade laughed and ran his clean finger down her cheek, which was covered in flour.
“Is that true?”
“What’s going on in here?” a voice suddenly asked.
Kade froze and instinctively grabbed Isla’s hips when he heard the voice. When he realized it was Micah’s voice, he rolled his eyes and left the kitchen with Isla close behind.
“We need to talk, Kade.”
Isla waved shyly, and Kade turned to face his friend.
“Hey Micah”
Micah squinted at the blonde, but then his eyes got bigger as he realised what was going on.
“Isla, right? So, you were the one who made the boss go crazy the other day.
“What?”
Kade sighed and ran a hand down his face. “Micah, what do you have to tell me?”
“Okay,” Micah said, pulling his eyes away from the blonde. “Do you remember how we’ve been trying to get Lorenzo to hire us for the past year?”Micah asked.
“Yes,” Kade said without hesitation.
“Well, he called me out of the blue and said he wanted to meet.”
“That’s great.” “Tell him I’m free next Wednesday.” Kade nodded and smiled.
Micah frowned at what he said. “Actually, he said he wants the meeting to be today.” Like, in twenty minutes.
Kade’s eyebrows knit together and his mouth was a straight line.
“I see.” He said it in a rude way.
Kade hated being told what to do, and that was one of his biggest pet peeves. Because of this, he always made sure he was in charge. No matter who the potential client was, the demands made Kade feel bad.
“Yeah…” Micah trailed off and looked at Kade with suspicion.
“Let Lorenzo know that the meeting will take place on my terms and on my property.” Tell the important people that they need to be in the conference room in twenty minutes.
“Sir, yes sir.” Micah nodded in a mocking way. He nodded to the two people and then left the house.
“Are you going to leave me? Isla pouted, “What about the brownies?”
“To be honest… Kade asked softly as he walked to the couch, “Did you want to come with me?”
Isla’s eyes got big with shock, but she looked at him with caution.
“Really?”She asked, “I thought your job was dangerous.”
“Only in the field, baby.”
Kade sat down on the soft cushion and pulled the girl down to sit on his lap.
“My office is just like any other office building.” Totally safe.
As he made his case, his thumb brushed against the soft skin of her cheek.
“I want to be completely honest with you, and that means you should know where I work. No more lies.
Isla smiled at what he said and leaned into his soft touch.
“Stop lying,” she said again.
Kade smiled and picked Isla up off his lap, which made the smaller girl squeal. He laughed and took her hand to take her to his garage.
“Choose anyone you want.”
Isla’s jaw dropped when she saw all the sports cars parked in the garage. She wondered why he chose to drive the Range Rover when he could have made more money with a different car.
“Do you really need all those cars?”She asked in shock as she looked at a bright red Lamborghini.
“It’s just a hobby.”
When she looked at him with an unimpressed look, Kade laughed.
When he saw how much Isla liked the bright sports car, he said, “Lambo it is then.”
“What? No. We can just use your regular car, Kade.
Isla’s voice said one thing, but her eyes said something else. She didn’t want to sound snobby or materialistic by saying she wanted to ride in a car that cost six figures.
“I’m waiting!”Kade teased before getting in the driver’s seat.
Isla bit her lip in thought, but she lost control when Kade turned on the engine.
“Fine, if you insist,” she said with fake reluctance and slid into the passenger seat. As Kade leaned over to buckle her in, she looked him in the eye and smiled back at him.
“Hold on tight, sweetheart.”
************
Isla’s face was pressed against the window the whole time. She watched as they drove away from his fancy neighborhood to a place where there weren’t many other houses or people.
Isla looked at the building with some doubt as Kade parked in the back. It was big, but it looked like it had been left behind. It looked like a warehouse.
“Are you sure this is the right place?”
Kade laughed as he turned off the car.
“Yes, doll, I promise it looks better on the inside.”
Isla nodded, but she was still a little unsure. She played with her fingers as her nerves started to kick in.
Kade held her hands in his big ones and kissed each of her knuckles.
“Don’t worry, baby. “You’re safe.”
Isla mumbled a soft “okay” and waited for Kade to open her door after he left his own.
As they walked towards the building’s entrance, which had two huge men standing guard on either side, the blonde bit her lip. She looked at Kade with worry as they got closer, but he just kept walking, giving off an air of confidence, dominance, and strength.
They didn’t say anything as they walked past the guards, and Isla’s shoulders relaxed when they got inside without any problems.
When she finally saw the inside of the building, she had to stop her mouth from dropping open in awe.
The building looked fancy and decorated, like a high-end office in the city. Kade stood in front of the elevator and read the sign that showed the different floors and which department was on each one.
Floor 1: Conference Rooms 1a–1H
Floor 2 to 12 for manufacturing
Packaging: Floors 13–15
Consultation—Floors 16–18
Floor 19: Conference Room 2a-2k
“X” on the 20th floor
Isla frowned at the last one and opened her mouth to ask Kade a question, but someone else spoke first.
“Boss, everything is ready for you in 2b, but Lorenzo hasn’t gotten there yet.”
Isla looked up through her lashes and saw a tall, skinny man who looked to be in his 30s.
“Good. Is everyone else here? As Kade stepped into the elevator, he talked. He pulled Isla to his side, which made her blush. She never liked public displays of affection.
“We’re still waiting for Adriano, but you know how he is.”
“Ya,” Kade said through clenched teeth.
Isla couldn’t help but look around when the elevator dinged and they got to the 19th floor.
Everything on this floor was even more luxurious than the last one. The furniture looked like it cost a lot of money, and the doors were all lined with gold.
Kade whispered to Isla, “This is where we meet with our important clients.”
Isla’s mouth made an “O” shape, and she nodded slowly.