Isabella~
"Your phone is buzzing." Once I heard his voice, I looked down at my phone, which I had left charging in his car. Last night, I put my phone on mute and forgot to return it to general mode.
What should I tell him right now? I don't want to lie to him about what happened last night, but I'm afraid of his reaction once he finds out I spent my last night with Xavier. However, given the suspicious look in Xavier's eyes, I must accept the call immediately.
"Bella, what the hell is going on? Will you please explain why you didn't return home at night?" As soon as I received the call, his anger-filled voice pierced my ears.
"I am... I am..." Hearing his irate tone made my tongue twitch, and I had no idea what to say to him.
"Don't tell me that you spent your night with that murderer. That's why you ignored my calls the whole night." This time, his voice was filled with a mixture of complaints and worry.
"I will explain everything to you later. I am going to an urgent meeting." I looked at the transport company in front of me, so I disconnected the call before he could question me further.
"Miss Luis, at least now tell me what you are going to do with this transport company." Xavier looked at me with a pleading gaze.
"You should wait here. I will be there in some time." I unbuckled my seat belt to get out of the car.
"After yesterday's events and in such an unfamiliar setting, I can't leave you alone." His concern for me immediately flashed into his eyes. This time, I heard a hint of panic in his voice.
"Okay, but please don't interfere with my work." I consented to bring him along with me to the transport company under strict warning.
"I have to find a new attorney to represent me if you keep using this cheap tactic to obtain Jordan's address." His expression tightened into fury.
His growing possessiveness and protectiveness worried me about the boundaries I'd set with him to keep him away from me, but at this point, finding Jordan Lucas was far more important than my feelings, so I nodded softly.
"How may I help you?" The transport company manager approached us with a wide smile on his face.
"To move my horse from a stable to a different city, I want to rent a truck."I smiled broadly at him, hoping to easily elicit information from him. Xavier's intense eyes were fixed on my face as he noticed me smiling at the manager.
"I don't think I can organize a truck for you right now, Miss, as all of the trucks are currently engaged." He told us after reviewing the information on his computer.
"Don't let me down, please. I want to take my horse with me today." I gave him a genuine impression of my innocence by blinking my eyes.
"Don't be sad, miss. Let me think about what I can do to help you." With greedy eyes, he studied my face before turning back to his computer screen.
"We apologize, but there are currently no available trucks." He nodded with sadness.
"Please let me view your data. Perhaps together, we can figure something out." I gave him a hopeful glance.
"Of course."When he saw my sultry grin, he instantly let me use his computer.
Xavier held my hand tightly under the table as I was about to get up from my chair. In my bewildered gaze, I caught a glimpse of the wrath that burned in his eyes. I loosened my grip on my hand by pressing my heel into his shoe. The store manager happily showed me his computer screen as I bowed down to look at it.
I feel uncomfortable flirting with the manager, but this is my last chance to get any information about Jordan Lucas, and I don't want to lose this opportunity by any mistake. I had already activated the camera on my phone and discreetly tucked it into my jeans pocket to record a video of his desktop. As I navigated his computer screen, I gathered information about his recent truck travels.
"You're correct; all your trucks are full. I believe I must stay in this city for a few more days before I ride my horse back to my city." I took out my phone and saved the recorded video.
"It would be a pleasure to see you again, Miss." He trailed us to our car.
"Sure, we will meet soon." I gave him a kind smile and got inside the car.
"What? Why are you staring at me?" I felt Xavier's burning gaze fixed on my face as he drove the car.
"What was that?" He clenched his jaw and tightly gripped the car's steering wheel.
"That was my way to get the address." His intense stare enveloped me. I believe that his eyes will soon burn me if he continues to gaze at me in this manner.
"I told you not to pull such stupid tricks ever again. If you told me what information you wanted from that manager, then I would think of another way to get information from him about why you flirted with him." He stopped the car on the roadside.
"Why did you stop the car?" I looked at him with irritation.
"Answer me first: What was all that? Don't you believe in my abilities to handle him, or do you like to flirt with any random man?"
"Xavier, mind your language." His questioning of my character was unexpected.
"You are aware that I only did that to obtain the address."
His remarks bring back memories of the day of our wedding anniversary when he labeled me a gold digger and verbally assaulted me. I was trying not to let on that his remarks impacted me, but today, they cut so deep that I couldn't control my tears.
"I apologize; I did not intend to offend you; however, I am not fond of the flirtatious behavior of men toward you. You are my lawyer, and it's my responsibility to protect you." He offered me tissue paper to wipe off my tears. His anger-filled expression softened on seeing my tears.
"Don't cry, please." Suddenly, his harsh tone softened into a sweet one.
Could he be unhappy with me for simply being his lawyer, or is he attempting to mask his possessiveness in our professional relationship? I looked into his deep blue eyes, trying to discover the answer.
"Now please tell me what you got and how you got the idea to visit the transport company." He looks curious to hear about my new strategy.
I excitedly opened my phone and showed him the video I had recorded, explaining my strategy to reach Jordan Lucas. His previous hurtful actions faded into the background as I became enthralled with the moment.
"Miss Luis, I admire your intelligence, but I must proceed with the rest of the search as I can not bear to witness you flirting with another man." Upon viewing the footage, a smile played across his lips.
"Although you can finish the next phase on your own, you must promise to bring me to Jordan Lucas." I extended my hand in front of him.
"I can't win with your stubbornness. No matter how much I try to stop you from meeting him, you will surely find a way to do so." He sighed defeatedly and got out of the car to take the final step toward Jordan Lucas.