9. Graham

The storm has stopped. It stopped around the time I fell asleep last night. It lasted nearly two days, which is a ridiculous amount of time.

We can't leave the house yet since we're currently snowed in. And there's still no cell service, but I'm sure both those issues will be fixed in a couple of hours. Isabella isn't up yet. I had a lot on my mind when I woke up this morning. It was early, so I figured I'd just let her keep sleeping while I went to get some work done.

I might not have an official position in the company currently—mostly due to my mistakes—but I try to keep up with what's going on with it. I'm reviewing the quarterly budget I had the head of financials send me a couple of days ago while drafting an email to one of the investors I brought into the company. He's a Japanese billionaire and has been an asset in helping our products gain traction in Asia. But he's thinking of pulling his support right now. If the email doesn't work, I'll have to schedule an online meeting so we can hash out whatever it is he's dissatisfied with.

I'm not sure how long I'm spend working on my laptop, but suddenly, there's a throat clearing, and when I look up, Isabella's standing by the couch. She offers me a small smile.

"Hey."

The smile I offer her is instinctive; there's no stopping it. Her brown hair's a mess, she's wearing only my shirt, and there's not an ounce of make up on her face—and she's still fucking gorgeous.

"Good morning, Sunshine. Did you sleep well?"

She nods, biting her bottom lip. "What are you working on?"

"Just some stuff for the company."

When I check the time, I realize I've been up for two hours. I didn't even notice. The only time my brain shuts up is when I throw myself into work, focusing on only one thing at a time.

"Okay, that's nice," she says awkwardly.

She hasn't looked me in the eye once. I understand sometimes seeing or talking to a person after sex can be weird, but I thought we knew each other better than that.

You've only known her for three days, my subconscious reminds me.

"The storm's stopped," I inform her for the lack of something to say.

"Yeah, I saw. Thank God."

I get to my feet, "Listen, Isabella, we should probably talk about?—"

"I should let you get back to work," she says quickly, cutting me off.

My eyebrows rise. Is she being serious right now?

I was going to say we need to talk about last night. Because I have no clue what to do about the emotions running through me, and I need her to tell me she feels the same way. It was amazing and scary. I'm choosing to focus on the amazing part right now.

But it's clear she doesn't even want to think about it at all.

"Go back to work, Graham. I'll get started on breakfast. Let's see if I can whip up something better than eggs and toast," she says teasingly.

I can't even smile at that. She leaves and my jaw clenches. Fucking great. I should have known sleeping together was a mistake.

I just really couldn't help myself.

The day passes by slowly. We mostly orbit around each other, talking but not about the things that really matter. The cell towers get fixed in the afternoon. We're in the living room, watching a movie, when notifications start to pop up on our phones. Isabella grabs hers quickly, going through them. I take my sweet time because I'm sure nothing of consequence happened in the two days I was off the grid.

The only people who tried to get in touch with me are my sister and, of course, my mother. I send Mikayla a quick text explaining what happened and assuring her that I'm okay. As for my mother, we'll talk when I get home.

Isabella groans softly and I glance up at her.

"My family's going crazy," she mutters. "I need to call them."

I don't say anything as she dials a number. The person on the other end picks up quickly.

"Hey, my love," she greets, her voice light. "Where's your sister?"

I can't hear the other end of the conversation, but if I had to guess, I'd say it's her little cousins.

"Maria, sweetie, I promise I'm fine. The storm just lasted a long time," she explains gently.

It's clear how much she loves them. Even her eyes are brighter as she listens to them.

"Yes, I was perfectly safe. I stayed with a friend." She frowns at whatever they say before sighing softly."Yeah, sure, you can give him the phone." Her tone changes in an instant. "Hey, cugino. How's it going?"

She listens to whatever it is the person on the other end says. It must be a lot because it takes a long moment before she speaks again.

"You done? It's not my fault there was a storm," she says in frustration before falling silent once again."Fine, I got it. I'll book a flight and leave today," Isabella states. "You need to chill, Enzo. Bye."

She hangs up the call. I wait for a few seconds before talking.

"You have to leave?" I ask.

"Yeah, my cousin all but threatened to come drag me back home if he had to."

My eyebrows climb. "Why does he care so much? He's not your father."

"No, but he's protective. And he's also in charge," she says on a sigh.

"Of what? You?"

"Of everything."

I'm confused. Isabella smiles.

"Don't worry about it, Gray. But I do need to leave. I've been away for too long and I miss the twins."

I clear my throat, ignoring the way disappointment churns in my gut. "Yeah, sure, no problem. I'll drive you to your hotel."

She goes upstairs to get her stuff and, after grabbing a coat, I head outside to get my car out of the garage. Thankfully, the snow has started to melt and the road looks safe enough to drive. I'm guessing someone already got to work on them this morning. Isabella reappears, wearing one of my hoodies over her dress.

"I can borrow this, right?" she asks.

She looks fucking good in my clothes. It drove me crazy watching her wear my shirts around the house these past few days. I guess that's over now.

"Sure," I say on a shrug before entering the car.

She doesn't comment on my shitty mood, and we're on our way to the hotel soon enough. The car ride is painfully silent. All I can think is that she's leaving and this is all coming to an end.

We arrive at the hotel and I park the car before facing her.

"Isabella…" I start then stop because I have no clue what to say.

She smiles at me and my breath hitches. "Thank you for everything. I don't know what I would have done without you these past few days."

"Me neither." I would have gone crazy if I was all alone during that storm.

"I'm really glad I met you."

"This feels like a goodbye. You're not really going to say goodbye without giving me your number," I say on a frown. "This is the twenty-first century; we can still communicate."

Isabella shakes her head. "I don't think we should."

My heart breaks a little at that. "Why not?"

"Because you have something important to do. And while the past few days have been amazing, all good things must come to an end."

My jaw clenches. "So, that's it? Thank you for everything, sayonara? You never want to see me again? What was I to you, Isabella? Something to pass the time? We sleep together and you pretend it never happened. That's all I am? A nice fuck?"

Her eyes narrow. "Don't be mean."

"Help me understand why you don't want to continue this!"

"Because you have your world and I have mine, okay? If you knew who I really was, you'd understand," she says gently.

"Then tell me," I implore.

"No," she shakes her head, "you don't need to know. I really am grateful. Goodbye, Graham."

I can't even look at her right now. She gets out of the car and I just sit there for a long moment, staring down at my clenched fists. Everything in me wants to go after her, but I stay put. Then there's a knock on my window.

I look up, and Isabella's standing outside. She gestures for me to climb out. I hesitate before opening the door and doing so.

"What?" I grit out.

"Graham," she says softly. "Come on, look at me."

I do so, slowly. She offers me a small smile before rising on her toes and placing her hands on my shoulders.

"I don't want this to end with a fight," she whispers, pulling me down slightly.

And then she's kissing me. My heart practically stops. It takes me a second, but then I'm kissing her back. Sparks explode within me and everything else falls away. All I can think about, all I can feel is her. And it's pretty fucking amazing.

The kiss lasts only about fifteen seconds and it feels too soon when she pulls away. We're both breathing heavily. I swallow before speaking.

"You're really going to say goodbye to this, Isabella?" I ask.

She looks up at me, her blue eyes softer than I've ever seen them.

"We'll see each other again, Graham. I promise," she states. "In the meantime, though, don't try to look for me. Promise me you won't."

My jaw clenches. I was going to find her as soon as she left. It wouldn't have been hard. But now…

"Come on, Sunshine."

She fixes me with a hard look. "Don't try to look for me."

"Fine," I groan after a few seconds. "Instead, you come find me, okay?"

She nods. "I'll find you. I promise."

I kiss her one more time, just a quick one, before she steps back and waves.

"Go on," I tell her.

I watch her enter the hotel, still wanting with everything in me to follow. But I don't, deciding to trust her and her promises.

Once she's gone, I start my car and drive away. I should head home as well. To D.C. I can't keep running away from my future. I'll only end up with regrets if I don't at least try.

It'll probably be hard. My father's not going to make this easy for me. But I'm a Steele; we go after what we want. Which means I can't let Isabella go. She's right. I have something to do, but if she doesn't find me once I'm done, then I'll find her.

Before I leave Denver, I track down the two assholes who put the drug in her drink. Actions have consequences. I've heard that all my life. It feels good to dole out consequences of my own to idiots like them.