Page 21

“Great! When you’re ready, meet me at the front.”
Isla closed the fridge and leaned against it when the footsteps stopped and she couldn’t hear them anymore.
The quiet around her was the perfect trap. It seemed comforting, but it let her mind wander and think when she didn’t want to do anything else.
She got to work right away cleaning up the back room. Because of what happened that day, it was messier than usual.
Isla finished an hour later, breathing heavily as she turned off the water after washing her last bowl.
When her phone rang, she got up and walked over to answer it.
“Hello?” She said it without thinking, not looking at the ID.
“Hey, beautiful girl.”
Isla was so happy to hear his voice that she almost hummed. The cute nickname wasn’t helping her case.
“Hey, Kade,” she said. Even though the man wasn’t there, she smiled and her cheeks were rosy and strained.
“I just wanted to check that you’re still okay to be picked up in ten minutes.”
Isla bit her lip and said something. “Actually, my friend Brynn and I were going to hang out after work. Could you pick me up then?”
“That’s fine, baby. Have fun. Text me when you’re done and I’ll come get you.”
“Okay,” she said softly with a shy smile.
“Okay. I’ll see you later.”
Isla said, “Bye,” and then hung up.
“Oh my gosh, you guys are so cute!”
Isla jumped and put a hand over her chest when she heard the noise. Her heart almost stopped from fear.
“Brynn, you scared me to death. How long have you been there?”
The tall brunette shrugged her shoulders and walked over to the shorter blonde.
“Long enough.” She took a handful of Isla’s hair and looked at the ends.
“I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Was that the same guy who came in a little while ago? Because, wow, that guy is hot.”
Isla was about to say something, but someone else cut her off.
“Is he your boyfriend or something? I’m just asking out of curiosity,” Brynn said with a Cheshire smile on her face.
Isla blushed because she was surprised by how strong Brynn’s personality was.
“Uh, yeah, we’ve been going out for a while.”
Brynn’s smile faded, and she quickly changed the subject.
“We should probably leave. I was thinking we could go see a movie. There’s a new theatre open, and I’ve heard the seats are really comfy and even recline.”
Isla tilted her head, confused by the sudden change of subject, and her mind spun as she tried to keep up with the outgoing woman.
Brynn bought a small Dasani water when they got to the movie theatre. Isla got a big bag of Fruity Pearls, a blue slushie, and a big bag of popcorn.
The taller girl looked at Isla’s food with suspicion, and when Isla saw how different their meals were, she felt embarrassed.
Isla had never had a problem with her body before. She wasn’t too thin, but she wasn’t too fat either. Her stomach was pretty flat, but her hips and thighs were big and thick to fit.
She had a little extra weight on her stomach that never bothered her before, but as she followed her friend into the dark room, she couldn’t help but frown when she saw Brynn’s taller but thinner body.
*************
The movie was over in a flash, and Isla could hardly understand what her friend said as they left.
Brynn laughed at her own words, which she found funny. “That movie was so good! I was surprised Tina left her husband for Greg, though. I would never leave my man if he was loaded; you would have to be a complete idiot to do that.”
Isla laughed a little, but she was really looking for the car that belonged to the man who took away all her problems.
Isla could almost cry with relief when a black Range Rover pulled up to the curb as if someone were listening from above.
She was feeling a lot of different things, and she didn’t know how to handle them all. She felt like she could explode because of the insecurities and criticism that were eating away at her mind.
A tall man got out of the car and took off his black Ray-Bans. His blue eyes showed no emotion except when he looked at her.
Isla rushed over to him and grabbed the fabric of his grey suit.
“I missed you,” she said softly into his chest. She was emotionally drained to the point of being unable to function.
“Whoa, is everything okay?” he asked, running his hands down her arms in worry.
He looked up after not getting an answer and made eye contact with the tall brunette who was watching with longing.
She came out of her daze when she saw blue eyes and quickly fixed her top and smiled shyly.
He asked, “What happened?” while pushing Isla against his side.
Brynn looked confused and furrowed her brows.
“What do you mean? We went to the movies, nothing happened.” She ended her sentence with a small laugh, and her eyes flickered between the couple in a quick flash of jealousy.
“Thanks for a great night, Brynn. I’ll see you at work tomorrow,” Isla said before Kade could say anything else.
She grabbed his hand and led him to his car. She could feel herself falling apart more and more with each step. By the time she got to the black car, her legs were shaking under her weight.
“Isla, baby, tell me what’s wrong. Why are you so upset?”
Kade got her in the car and put her on his lap. She was nervous and fidgeted until a few tears fell.
“What’s wrong with me?” She said, her voice breaking.
Kade’s eyes got bigger when he saw how sad she was, and he frowned at her question.
“There’s nothing wrong with you at all. You’re my perfect girl. Why would you even say that?”
“I-I was on the cash register today and I could barely use my voice,” she said angrily. “I get so nervous, and I’ve never done it before. Oh my gosh, Kade, it was so embarrassing.”
She sighed heavily and wiped her cheeks before she spoke again.
“I don’t know. It’s dumb, but I want to make more friends and maybe do my job without feeling like a total idiot.”
Isla bit her lip because she wasn’t sure if she should talk to him about how insecure she was about her body.
“And…and ya.”
Kade moved Isla so that she was sitting on his lap and facing him.
He used his thumb to wipe away her tears and kissed her lips softly.
“Baby, I know how much you want to make friends. Trust me, I do. But you can’t be so hard on yourself. You’re doing the best you can, and that’s good enough for now. I hate to see you like this.”
He took both of her hands and squeezed them hard before moving on.
“I know it must be hard to feel this way, but I never want to see you put yourself down like this again. Okay?”
“Okay,” Isla said after a moment.
Kade squeezed Isla’s thigh to show that he liked her and then sat her down in the passenger seat so he could drive her home.
She had been with him for the past few days, and even though he was selfish, he didn’t want to take her away from her family, especially since Clarice didn’t like him.
Kade saw that Isla still looked upset on the way home, but why?
He kept going, glancing at her every now and then until the sad girl sniffled.
His eyebrows came together, and he parked his car in an empty McDonald’s parking lot before turning it off.
“Isla, what’s going on?”
Kade’s voice cut through the soft sniffles, and the deep baritone made the car shake.
Isla shook her head a little and moved closer to the window.
Kade frowned when she didn’t answer, and all of a sudden he felt a pang of worry.
He had never seen the blonde girl with doe eyes so sad before.
She was always smiling, but she was quiet when other people were around. But he wasn’t like other people.
He reached out and gently turned her face to meet his. The sight broke his heart.
Isla’s eyes were red and swollen, and the blue orbs were swimming in tears that wouldn’t come out. Her button nose twitched with every breath she took, and her full lips trembled as she looked at the taller man.
When she tried to pull away from him, Kade’s grip got tighter.