CHAPTER 5.
*By Isabella.*
On Saturday morning, as I ate breakfast, I received a call from my former boss. I was surprised to hear from him at first. I thought it might be related to the altercation I had with Valentino. But then again, we always had a good relationship, maybe he wanted to check in on how the company was doing... Or scold me for what happened with his son. Finally, I picked up after a few minutes of hesitation.
"Hello?"I said.
"Isabella. My dear girl. How delightful to hear your voice," Mr. Marshall exclaimed from the other end of the phone.
"How are you, Mr. Marshall? What a pleasant surprise," I blurted out. Well... He sounds happy, so I guess he doesn't know. That's what I was thinking as I let out a sigh of relief.
"Doing well, my girl. Enjoying retirement with my wife. The reason I'm calling is to invite you to dinner tonight."
"Invite me to... dinner?" I asked, puzzled.
"Yes. You know, Issi, since you worked with me at the company, I've always thought of you like a daughter and I really don't want to lose touch. Besides, my wife is eager to meet you; please don't disappoint her."
"Sure, Mr. Lorenzo. I'll be there tonight."
"Thank you, dear. We'll be expecting you. How does 7:00 p.m. sound? My wife likes to make a good impression on our guests."
"Seven sounds fine. Thank you for the invitation," I said and hung up.
I sighed, smiling with relief. My boss is a very kind man. I couldn't decline a dinner invitation and disappoint him. Although I honestly don't feel like going, I'll have to make an effort.
After lunch and cleaning my apartment, I took a relaxing shower. When I was done, I wrapped myself in a towel and headed to my wardrobe to choose my outfit for the dinner.
I chose a long-sleeved white blouse with shimmering cuffs and a shiny short pink skirt, with nude-colored heels on my feet. Plus, I opted for very soft, natural makeup. I didn't want to be overdone, just normal. So as not to cover up my nature too much.
I put a lot of effort into looking like a normal person. A cheerful one. Not a broken woman with a shattered heart. It had been too long since I had put in so much effort. But after all Mr. Lorenzo has done for me, I decided I couldn't let him down.
Once I was satisfied with my look, I checked the time and saw I still had a while. I decided to call Nicolas, my psychologist, to apologize for missing our appointment and to ask for some advice.
"Hello."I said when he picked up.
"Isabella… What happened? You forgot our session. Are you feeling again that this isn't helping?"
"I know… It's just that I had a very busy day"I said. "You know I feel like nothing works."
"Okay. And what's the reason for your call? Is everything alright?"he asked. "Isa, you're making progress in our sessions, even if you refuse to accept it. You need to keep them up, otherwise, it's logical to feel like I'm not helping."
"Yes, I know… I just wanted to apologize for not showing up and… I have a dinner tonight with my former boss and his wife, and… I'm not sure what to do. I don't know how to behave."I exclaimed. "I thought it would be good to call you."
"Just act normal. You don't have to be afraid. Just be yourself"he said. "Everything will be fine. And if you feel uncomfortable, you can choose to leave"he asserted. "If there's any topic you don't want to talk about, just tell them. I'm sure they will understand."
"Okay… I think I'll be okay with that."
"You can call me if anything happens. And don't forget to come see me. I think you just realized that I am helpful."
"I will, Nick. Thank you"I exclaimed, embarrassed.
I hung up the call, took the keys to my Beetle, and headed for the address the man had sent me via text message. I had never been to the Marshall mansion. I only knew from rumors that they lived in a huge house with a lovely garden, and upon arriving there, I realized the rumors were absolutely true and even understated. It was a beautiful house, large, with impressive architecture and a huge garden full of flowers. I announced my arrival at the entrance, and once the gate was opened, I drove up to the front of the house and parked my car.
Mr. Lorenzo and his wife were waiting for me at the front door. I got out of my car with a shy smile and walked up to them...
"Good evening."I said.
"How wonderful to see you, child. You have no idea how much we're delighted to have you here," Mr. Lorenzo exclaimed.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, lovely. My name is Cristina," said the lady with a hint of excitement in her voice?
"A pleasure, Mrs. Cristina. Thank you very much for the invitation," I said.
"Oh, come on. Please. Drop the formalities. Just call us by our first names. Is that alright, dear?"
"Sure. I guess so," I said.
"Come here. Come in, come in. We're preparing some delicious pasta for dinner. Hope you like them," Mrs. Cristina exclaimed.
"Of course. It's my favorite food."
Mrs. Cristina led me by the arm into the house. She was just as kind as her husband. However, all their kindness felt strange to me. After all, we had just met. But it was a fleeting thought. I must accept that kind people still exist. Cristina took me to the living room, and we had several trivial conversations. I was very happy to be there. Despite being a large house, it was very cozy. I felt good there and, for the first time, felt Ezequiel close to me occasionally and not all the time. I was concerned that Valentino wasn't there. I wondered if he lived with his parents or had an apartment or house elsewhere. But then I thought he was probably on a hunt at some seedy bar in the city. After all, that's how guys like him are.
A moment later, we moved to the dining room, as dinner was about to be served.
"Dear, I hope you don't mind that Esmeralda is dining with us here. She's been with us for many years. However, she is now part of the family."
"Oh, no, no. Please. I don't mind at all. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Esmeralda."
"The pleasure is all mine, miss," the very kind woman replied.
She was a woman in her early sixties. She seemed very kind and friendly. I was very pleased that this family didn't treat employees with disdain, as is the case with most wealthy families.
"My boy. How good it is to have you here. You arrived just in time for dinner," Mrs."Cristina said, focusing her gaze right behind me. I tensed, for I already knew whom she was referring to. After all, I didn't know if Mr. Lorenzo had other sons apart from him."
"Mother. I apologize for being late. I was busy with some business," he said. -"I didn't know we had company."
At that moment, I turned around in my chair and his face was expressionless.
"We invited Isabella to dine with us. Your father has told me a lot about her, and I thought it would be good to finally meet her," she declared.
"Of course. Good evening, Miss Moretti," he said abruptly.
"Good evening," I said, blushing. I still felt embarrassed to see him after our argument. However, I had pride. He had treated me poorly, and I was not willing to allow it.
Valentino approached the table and took a seat across from me. He watched me with his cold gaze and his green eyes locked on me.
The dinner was very peaceful, in spite of that meeting. Without turmoil. Valentino cast glances at me now and then. But I tried to ignore him. The tension between us was palpable. However, among the rest of us, we had conversations. Valentino only paid attention or at least seemed to.
"Isabella, I think you've heard a lot about us. I would like you to tell us about yourself," Cristina said.
"Sure. What would you like to know?" I exclaimed, wiping the corner of my lips with a napkin"a gesture that Valentino did not miss."
"Do you have family?"
"I never knew my parents. I grew up with a friend of my mother's. She took care of my education until I was old enough to start working and could support myself. Mariana's mother has been like a second mother to me."
"Oh, right, Felipe's secretary. The HR director," said Lorenzo.
"That's right. When Mariana's mother passed away, she took over her house and I rented my own apartment, which is... half a block from her place" I said, provoking laughter from everyone but Valentino, who did not smile but seemed attentive to what I was saying. -"Also, my other friend Julia lives halfway between both houses. We've been inseparable since we were little," I exclaimed. After finishing speaking, Mr. Lorenzo's response got me thinking. Felipe is Mariana's boss. How did I not notice? It's the guy who took her home the other night.
"You're a fighter. It shows," Lorenzo declared.
"And you... didn't you have more children?" I asked. I felt the atmosphere get uncomfortable for a moment, especially with Valentino. His gaze darkened, becoming somewhat somber.
"We... Yeah, we did... But it's a long story," said Cristina, her gaze turning sad.
"Oh... I'm so sorry. I really didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," I exclaimed.
"Don't worry, dear. You're not," said Lorenzo. -"However, I thought I saw Valentino's eyes glistening like he was about to cry."
"You're a very beautiful girl. Surely you have many suitors," Esmeralda chimed in, breaking us out of the awkwardness. At that moment, Valentino, who had twirled a considerable amount of spaghetti on his fork and was bringing it to his mouth, started coughing, choking.
"I apologize," he said, as he drank water to ease the cough that had caused his choking. I looked at him confusedly, and then at Esmeralda. My heart clenched at her question.
"I... had a boyfriend, but... he... passed away a while ago," I said in a low voice.
"Forgive me, child. I shouldn't have asked," the lady said, embarrassed.
I simply nodded. I could feel everyone's gaze, as if expecting me to disintegrate or something. I tried to smile, but my mood had shifted. Inadvertently, Mrs. Esmeralda had reminded me that the love of my life was not by my side and, unlike an unrequited love affair, ours was filled with love, but separated by death. And that is the one problem without a solution.
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