28- Dinner with thy Enemy

Isabella

It’s been about a day since I last wrote inside my diary and I’ll admit, it’s definitely helped me way more than I care to admit. When I’m done writing I always move to put it away, hidden within my nightstand and away from prying eyes. Currently, I am sitting on my bed watching Disney+. Binge watching the Mandalorian. Too engrossed in the episodes to care, I soon realize that I might have a small crush on Pedro Pascal, the guy who plays Mando.

But, I’m getting myself carried away now. Sitting on my luxurious bed, enjoying my show I suddenly hear the locks on my door click open.

Moving into a sitting position on my bed, my mind quickly wanders over to Angela, but boy am I wrong. Standing near my door are all four of my fiances, the bad boys themselves: Lucus, Grant, Alex and Tony. My heart racing when I see them.

“Hello Principessa (Princess)” chuckles Lucus. “Got plans tonight?” he adds, the others chuckling. Ass.

Ha. Ha. Ha. “Nope” I sass. “But don’t quit your day job because me.”

Upon hearing my reply the guys just rolled their eyes before moving to take various spots around the room. Alex and Tony moving to sit on the sofa while Grant takes the armchair. A chair that Angela uses so she could sit with me. Lucus of course, opts for the bed, taking my feet and placing them within his lap. Prick. Feeling the bed dip I begin to feel uncomfortable.

Attempting to move my legs, does he growl, his hand holding firmly as he moves to rub the top of my shins.

Seconds tick by along with awkward silence before Grant moves to clear his throat, his voice sultry as he speaks, “How are you today il mio tesoro (My Treasure)?”

That was it, I finally snap. “Don't call me that. Never in your wildest dream, would I ever be your Tesoro (Treasure) least of all your Principessa (Princess)” I say pointing a finger at him. “Secondly, what more do you want me to say? Just peachy? Cause I’m NOT” I all but spat, the sarcasm thick. The men all looking at me with various looks of amusement and I huff.

“Mrs. Stark told us you did really well while we were gone” says Lucus softly, hand still rubbing my legs.

“Mrs. Who?” I ask in confusion. Only for it to dawn on me as I make a ‘O’ shape with my mouth. “You mean Angela?” I say, sounding more like a question than an answer. Lucus nodding.

“Yeah, she’s great, totally love her,'' I say, giving them total honesty. “Indeed she is,” chimes Grant. “She’s like a mother to all of us. And the only one who can light a fire under Lucus’s ass and live to tell the tale” Tony says, the others nodding including Lucus.

Soon the room turns silent and a soft firm voice speaks. “Isabella.” Looking up I move to see Lucus staring at me. “Are you going to try and escape from us again?” At the sound of his question I knew I needed to choose my words carefully. For after the last stunt, I knew it would be harder for me to do it again. Besides, I had other ways to piss them off. Finally I move to shake my head no.

“Words Isabella, Words” Alex demands from his spot on the couch.

“No” I answer, still nervous as I look to my lap, feeling small in comparison to these giants within my room.

“Okay then. We’re willing to give you another chance Agapi (Love) But only because we feel like you realized the errors of your way. Though we still don’t trust you. We’ve decided to put a strick limit on you, only letting you out of your room and chain during the day. You're free to roam the castle so long as you promise to be a good girl. But, they'll be rules."

Listening to every word, a mixture of emotions began to rise, not caring in the least as I really wanted out.

Remembering they liked verbal confirmation, I nod while saying, “Yes, I understand."

“Good then. Rule One is fairly obvious, Don’t try and escape. Rule Two, don’t leave the compound, ever. Rule Three, always be good. Be kind, considerate and always use manners while being respectful. Rule Four, curfew. Ten o’ clock sharp each night unless one of us gives you permission. Am I clear?”

“Yes” is my only response. Not caring as long as I was out of my damn room and these stupid ass chains.

Moving to stand, Tony moves to head for my closet. Lucus pulling out a tiny toothpick of some sort from his pocket. Inputting a code which is hidden from my line of sight, he moves to enter the four digit pin and then like many times before the cuff eventually comes off. Rubbing my ankle, Lucus continues as Tony returns with a silver formal sequin dress and matching silver heels.

Moving to stand, they all move from the room. Tony leaving the garments on the bed before turning and making his way towards the door. “Get dressed. You have 30 minutes. You’ll be joining us for dinner” says Grant just as the door is shut tightly, the sound of locks clicking into place once the door is firmly shut.

Looking towards the dress, I stare at it in awe. Strapless, it had a low v-neck cut which gave a perfect view of the girls. The dress making it impossible to wear a bra. Luckily the dress had built in support. The dress was floor length along with a small slit to the side that looked about mid thigh, kind of like Jessica Rabbit's long ruby dress. Even without putting the dress on, I knew it would be snug. Thankfully, I had showered earlier otherwise it would have been hard to put on over wet skin.

Slipping on the dress, I move to waddle into the bathroom free to move about without the chain. Entering the bathroom I move to see some makeup and hair products. Deciding to style my hair in a half-up, half-down look. Applying some black eyeliner I moved to apply a shimmery pale pink eyeshadow, building up the color until it gave me a smokey eye effect without the need of black eyeshadow. Adding some blush and some coral pink tinted lip gloss, giving my lips some added color.

Hearing the door open I move to exit the bathroom only to see two guards standing inside of the room. Slipping on my heels they move to usher me out of the room. Guiding me down the massive hallways, down the flight of stairs and into the massive formal dining room. Where once there I can’t help but notice the same group of people as before, with the exception of two more as well as an empty seat that now sat to the right of Lucus.

As voices quiet, I slowly move to approach the table. Lucus moving to stand from his chair as he offers me his hand. Taking his hand with mine, I decide it's better not to provoke the beast, at least not yet. The other men all standing from their chairs as Lucus walks me over to my seat. Taking my seat, Lucus moves to push me in. “You look beautiful” he whispers in my ear just as I sit. Murmuring a quick thank you the rest of the men all move to sit once Lucus does.

Dinner is then promptly served. As for tonight we were having a beautiful 16oz sirloin steak cooked to a medium well. Alongside it were grilled vegetables and seasoned rice. For drinks I was given water while the men all drank their preferred drink of choice.

Keeping my head low, I try to focus on my food. The men all in different stages of conversation. Listening in, I move to hear Lucus talk about shipments that were all headed to India while remembering to pay off coast guards once they arrived in US waters. Looking to Marco he’s given the assigned task of overseeing the exchange.

Switching gears, I move to listen in on Tony and Grant who were talking to two men who I still didn’t know. Their accents thick. Both with lots of tattoos which poked out from underneath the collars of their shirts. Not catching the whole situation, I do manage to catch something else that sparks my interest which then prompts me to speak without realizing it.

“What if you take your companies profits and reinvest them into marketing? Pushing ads on all the social media outlets to help cater to your lack of demographic support?”

And then, silence. The whole room goes quiet. One of the two men who were next to Grant move to look at me as if I had grown two extra heads while the other had a face full of anger. Grant on the other hand, only cocking his head while looking intrigued. “Please, Explain”.

He wasn’t playful, but serious. As I was now talking to the CEO of the Romano Enterprise. Fudge nuggets. Me and my big mouth.