After Fifteen minutes Isabella drove inside her driveway and heaved a sigh of relief as Adam was following her car and she was really scared. In order to fend him off, she had driven through inside lanes and finally managed to dodge him away. She got out of the car and took out her luggage. She looked at the tiny little vases of flowers she had purchased from the market at the Marina Del Rey. She smiled at her little treasures as she was fond of gardening and had a beautiful backyard that had a small lawn, which she mowed frequently.

She smiled and went inside the house looking at everything with pride and satisfaction. Her home was designed according to her fantasies. A place where friends and family could gather and eat informally. Although she never really had big parties, she made it a point to call her colleagues once a year for a Christmas get-together.

A built-in dresser taking up one wall was lined with books of different genres, which had taken her a lot of years to accumulate. The kitchen had a large modern built-in oven. And the stone-flagged floor.

In contrast against the wall was a very rustic and elegant sofa. It occupied most of the place near the window. She was very tired and went and sat down on the sofa trying to relax as she was disturbed about the things which happened some time ago. Four years ago, her life had been shattered by shocking events which made her run away from her hometown after that she had built everything with her own hands not depending on anyone.

After her mother’s death, her aunt Val was the only relative left and she did not want any kind of attachment with her father’s family after what they had done to her she never wanted to acknowledge them.

She shook her head helplessly as she was very close to her mother and her loss was a trauma to her. Though time had eased the pain and she appeared to return to normal, she had always carved for companionship and security but never took the initiative to be in a relationship or get married. And Alex had been her constant companion her friend.

Actually, they both depend on each other as he was heartbroken when she moved to Santa Monica as his Ex-girlfriend whom he had loved very deeply left him for another man. He was devastated and heartbroken and that’s when Isabella had always stood by him and been a constant companion. Both in his profession and personal life, Isabella played two different roles.

His sister Neely was Isabella’s best friend who would always try to match-make them but they both avoided the topic like a plague now that Alex had proposed to her, oh wait, not exactly proposed just took it for granted that she will get engaged to him.

She smiled and thought, I better make everything clear to him today when he comes home before he takes any hasty decision or they would be in a mess.

After that, she got up and went towards the garden to place the little vases she had brought.

***************************************************

Isabella was sitting quietly while Alex drove his car. He had insisted on taking her for dinner and as she was tired she did not refute him. Now they were on the way and neither of them was talking, there was an awkward silence in between them.

Isabella remembered that she had forgotten to call her aunt and rummaged inside her bag for her cell phone while she was speaking to her aunt she observed outside and was shocked when she saw the Bentley pulling outside a shopping complex.

“This isn’t the restaurant Alex, what are we doing here?” She asked curiously.

Alex smiled and climbed out of the car and opened the door for her. “We have one stop we need to make before dinner.”

As Isabella climbed and walked inside with him, she noticed that they had stooped outside the rear entrance of a famous jewellery store.

Her expressions were blank and she inquired. “What are we doing here?”

“You will soon know it.”

Her brown eyes flashed and she panicked. Before she could say anything to him Alex had pulled her inside.

And within seconds they were surrounded by smiling faces ready to help them.

“Mr Waltz, it is a pleasure to have you in our store, please come in we have already prepared the things for you.” The manager of the store bowed in front of him and made them sit on the comfortable sofa.

Isabella was blank and thought, what was this man doing? In a row that day she had been dominated by two men.

“Are you ready?” Alex asked.

Ready for what Isabella wondered but she did not want Alex to fool himself so she just glared at him.

But after some time she saw Alex kneeling in front of her with a dazzling diamond ring in his hand and smiling at her. “Isabella Jones, will you marry me?”

Isabella panicked and exclaimed. “What!” He really meant what he said the other night. She was surprised and shocked that Alex would pull a stunt like that, she could see the people surrounding them and looked at her with awe and Isabella could see that she was trapped.

She couldn’t let Alex down in front of so many people, so she just decided to go along with his proposal or he would become a laughing stock and it would be in the headlines that he was rejected.

I will deal with you later Alex, she thought.

She smiled broadly and nodded her head.

“Did you just agree?” Alex asked again for confirmation.

“Yes,” Isabella said gritting her teeth.

Alex grinned and slid the ring onto my finger. She could feel that it was quite heavy. She wanted to tell him so many things but she controlled my emotions.