Luca was in the meeting room with that nasty girlfriend of his. He could see steam and smoke coming out of Isabella's nostrils—like a trapped dragon ready to burn the office down.
At least she was silent.
His plan had backfired. He had underestimated how crazy Isabella was. Luca knew she would get jealous and confront the intern. He had calculated that she would threaten her.
Isabella never hesitated to use her connections to solve problems. The CEO of Legion Two was eager to bring her on board. She still had a binding contract with those independent guys though. No matter what they were close. One call from her and the intern would be gone.
But no.
That stupid girl decided to take matters into her own hands—literally.
First, she started swearing, after he had told her countless times not to do that in front of him. He had no tolerance for vulgarities — maybe 'fuck' was an exception.
He credited that to his mother, who was always correcting him when a bad word or two slipped out - words he'd picked up at school. While growing up he had many reasons to swear, but he tried to keep everything in his mind. He had manners; he was raised like that.
Isabella's nature was so aggressive that she couldn't control her actions or her mouth. And here they were. She said the wrong words and the intern responded.
She turned out to be quite feisty and wasn't going to let Isabella treat her like that. He couldn't blame her, but that also blew up his plan.
Oh! And the fact that the girl actually spoke Italian. It was a shock. And totally his mistake. He had once again to remind himself not to make assumptions. He should be more careful.
His master plan had turned into a disaster, and now he was picking up his phone, dialing Chloe to come and clean up the mess they made.
"Yes, Luca?" Chloe said when she picked up.
He kept his voice even. "Hey Chloe. There was an incident at the office."
"Please explain," Chloe said. She sounded calm, but her voice was just a half-octave higher than usual.
"Isabella got in a fight with that intern you brought us," he said shortly.
There was a short silence. "How bad was it?" she finally asked.
"Bad. I had to... break them up," he replied.
"We'll be right there," Chloe said, and the line went dead.
Both their managers were on their way. Isabella was silently looking at her hands. He opted to stare at the wall. After just a few minutes, Mr. Fuentes stormed into the meeting room.
"Miss Bosi! Are you ok?" he asked.
You should be worrying about the rest of us, not her.
She began wailing. "No! I am not ok! EVERYBODY here wants to hurt me!"
How unnecessarily dramatic...
"My dear Miss Bosi. I am here now. Everything will be ok."
And that is the joke of the day!
"What can YOU do for me? You are a powerless old man!" Isabella protested.
Luca felt bad for the guy. He was indeed powerless, a senior manager a couple of years away from retirement. Being the only one willing to keep up with Isabella was his last chance to create a star. But he didn't deserve this.
Luca wasn't sure if he felt bad for him because he accepted that behavior, or because Mr. Fuentes underestimated himself so much.
"Miss Bosi, nobody here wants to hurt you. We are all friends," Mr. Fuentes tried again to calm her.
"No! I am telling you! Nobody respects me! Him included!"
It was time to start yelling at him. He had to bite his tongue. He was already in trouble; no need to dig his grave deeper.
"Mr. West cares very much about the two of you. He is genuinely taking care of you all the time," Mr. Fuentes explained.
I am, of course I am!
But that comment only made Isabella begin faking sobs, hiding her face in her palms. She had told him she wanted to try acting. She was still far from that goal.
The door opened again, and luckily, Chloe was finally there.
"Isabella? Honey? Why are you crying?" Chloe asked, simultaneously casting a hostile look at Luca.
Always ready to judge. Don't you know judging isn't productive?
"Chloe... Why..? Is it true? You brought her here?" she asked, raising her eyes. They were red and watery.
What had she dropped in them?
"Who, dear?"
"The intern!
"Noelle? Yes, I did. Why?" Chloe asked.
"Why? Why bring another girl close to him? A girl that will study him? Why don't you think of me?"
"Honey, this has nothing to do with you or him. It is strictly my business, and please respect my decisions. Both of you." Chloe sounded stern.
"But..." Isabella started.
"No buts. I think what is more important is to let us know what happened."
Who would be the one to spit everything out? They both seemed reluctant. Luca knew the first one to talk would be more easily forgiven.
"She told the intern to leave. Then she swore. Then… she grabbed her, and... I had to stop it," he said, cutting the long story short.
Chloe shook her head. "Details. Please."
Luca had to narrate everything. Isabella didn't bother to intervene.
"And all that in broad daylight through the glass walls of this office. Mr. Fuentes, I hope there's no leak," Chloe said when he was done.
Isabella started shifting in her chair. "I was provoked. I'm not crazy! He lied to me! And she claimed that she would do whatever she wanted with him without asking me!"
"Isabella, you need to relax, darling. Luca is your boyfriend, period. Everyone knows that and that only. Who comes into this office and what they do with Luca is not your concern. Don't misinterpret things," Chloe explained.
"I'm not misinterpreting anything! There is something wrong with her!" Isabella insisted.
"Listen. You are upset. Please go home and relax. Then reflect on what you should be worrying about. Afterward, start preparing for that surprise appearance you're working on. All right?" Chloe left little room for a reaction.
Isabella lowered her eyes but kept her head high. "Mr. Fuentes, it's time for us to go."
Mr. Fuentes rushed to her side, offering an arm. She took it without a glance, rising. "Bye, both of you," she said over her shoulder and walked out.
"Good afternoon..." Mr. Fuentes said, running after her.
Chloe stood by the door, ensuring that they had actually left the office. Then, the smile on her face vanished. She closed the door and looked at him menacingly.
"And now… The two of us."