Chapter 62: Being Cautious

Isla

"Can we be Friends?" Sicario asked, his eyes wandered, checking me out. "After our conversation the other day, you owe me this much."

"I don't owe you anything." I paused. I loved my job a lot. Every design I had created was something I had loved to do. I love creating designs for spaces that bring out the emotion. Seeing the way everything played out, I was rethinking my decision. Maybe Dante was right. To not trust him?

"I'm sorry. You are right." My impatience only grew. He narrowed his eyes at me. "You don't trust me. You are taking his side." It was a reality he had just seen many by the dark storm of my eyes.

"I don't know what you are talking about but whatever you are trying to rope me into, I just want to work. Anything aside from that isn't going to be welcomed." He walked a few steps towards me, reaching out for a touch. I stepped back. I couldn't... He wrapped his fingers into a fist, thinning his lips.

"There's no way we can work together without a little friendship. It makes work easier. Especially now you are joining me for a special project." My eyes narrowed, a smirk formed at the side of his lips.

"What project?" He smiled, living across his desk and taking a seat. Just when I thought I was going to be avoiding him throughout my stay here, now I have to be working closely with him? Oh God! I scolded myself in my head.

"You don't have to be cautious with me. I won't hurt you or allow anything to harm you. I protect my staff." He paused, I had a feeling that wasn't all. "l stand by what I had said at the party. Love can make you forget who the real enemy is."

I rolled my eyes. "If this a scheme to get me to talk about Dante, I won't sir."

"I don't expect you to." He breathed out loud. "Okay,back to the issue at hand. We have little time for this project and I want to see the designs we can come up with."

"I don't understand." I blinked trying to make sense of any of this.

"I told you,you have an eye. Your work at San Francisco caught my attention that's why I wanted you to work here."

My heart fell back to it's usual rhythm. "Thank you sir."

"You don't need to call me sir, Isla. A little informality isn't going to hurt you is it?" Whatever he had before now dancing at the rim of his eyes was gone. I saw the stern side of him and everything else in between the mask.

A hint of smile touched his mouth, soft, almost dangerous in its gentleness. "Just Sicario would be fine."

My face warmed. "Thank you...sir." his eyes fell on mine. "Sicario." He moved to the desk and handed me a file. "We have a project. It's a villa we are meant to design. You will be working with me on the project. I need someone who feels the space without touching it. You are just the right fit."

I hesitated, holding on tho the flipped pages of the project. "Are you sure I am right for this? Clearly, you might have others who have worked closely with you other than me. I am still adjusting, I think it will take sometime..."

He flipped up a page. "She has a keen eye for creativity, hardworking and has been dedicated even while working under pressure." He dropped the file leaving a heavy thud sound, sending chills down my spine. "Are you telling me your supervisor lied when writing your review about your performance?"

"No." I couldn't call his name, at this point it left a bitter taste on my tongue.

"Isla, " he began, my name quiet but sharp. "People who question themselves often create the best work. And people who feel lost often find clarity in the right space." My breath stopped for a second. He walked closer, stopping a foot closer from me. Close enough that she could smell bergamot and something like cedar.

"You were chosen for a reason." He breathed. "If you don't trust me or anything else here, trust that." His voice wasn't loud. But it held weight. The kind that stayed in the room long after the words ended.

I swallowed, nodding slowly. "Okay."

"Good." He stepped back, the calm returning to his face. "Let's begin your first day." As I followed him, Isla felt the strange pull in my chest. Fear, curiosity—maybe something else. I had no idea but working this closely with him wasn't going to end well. Everything was going to change and I could feel it in my bones.

Dante. I didn't know what he was going to think when he learned this new development. He was going to be far more dangerous when he found out. I wanted to tell him, despite our little squabble,hiding it from him was only going to infuriate him more.

With what happened at the party, Dante hated him more than he admitted and that scared me the most.

My office was bigger than expected, soft light poured in through a wide window with thee view of the sea. A tall shelf held fabric samples stone slabs and design catalog. A large blackk desk sat at the center, all smooth edges and matte finish. They were two small sofas at the corner, cream colored and a warm rug under them.

It felt safe. It felt like mine. One of the few times, I breathed a little easier. I spent most of the morning going through files, sketches and the list of clients I will be working with. My eyes darted to the mondello project file sitting oddly from the rest files, my heart lost its rhythm, as several decision kept popping in my head. Aside from the skepticism, people knocked to welcome me. As one of them welcomed me to lunch with the rest of the designers. I agreed as they tried to be polite in a distant way. Like they know who I was tied to. Like they knew my name didn't belong in their world.

By lunchtime, my head was heavy with too much information. I packed my bag, grabbed my phone and headed downstairs towards the small cafe outside the building. I needed air. Where I don't feel watched or whispered about.

"Well, well. Look who we have here."

My chest tightened. I knew that voice. Slowly I turned.

Bianca. Bianca Romano.