Gangster's Paradise // Rio (Good Girls)

5. all kinds of predators

Isla sat back on the outside couch of the front porch, a wine glass in her hand. She ran her fingers along the top of her blonde hair, then down her braid, pulling it to the side as she flipped the page of her book. Suddenly, her phone buzzed, interrupting her peaceful moment. She leaned over, picking up her phone from the outside table and glanced at the text message.

Emma:
I know it's last minute, but can the kids stay the night at your house?

Isla:
Yes, of course. Just make sure they have all their school stuff.

Emma:
Thank you so much. They haven't eaten dinner yet, though.

Isla:
It's okay. I'll order a pizza or something.

Isla placed her phone back down on the table, running her hands down her face as she finished the rest of her wine. About 30 minutes later, Emma arrived, and Isla stood up from her seat with a smile, walking out to greet them.

"You be good for your Auntie Liz now, okay? Do your homework," Emma said, kissing their heads. "Mama loves you," she added, her voice filled with affection.

"Go on, do your homework. Pizza's on its way," Isla said, watching them run inside before turning her attention back to her sister. Emma's eyes were red and she seemed visibly nervous, as if she had been crying. Concerned, Isla asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes, I'm... I'm fine. I'm going to go talk to Axel. I... I need, umm..." Emma's voice was hurried and she looked around anxiously.

"Emma, calm down," Isla said, lightly touching her sister's arm, urging her to take a breath and calm herself down.

"Levi and I had a fight. It was a bad one. I haven't seen him for a couple of hours," Emma confessed. "And I need to make sure I have everything. I don't know, I just..." She trailed off, struggling to find the right words.

"It's okay, Emma. Figure out everything you need to figure out. They can stay as long as you need them to," Isla reassured her. Emma nodded, appreciating her sister's understanding, and got into her car.

Isla slowly walked back up the stairs, carefully picking up her wine glass and book, and made her way to the front door. As she entered the house, her phone buzzed, grabbing her attention. She looked down at the screen and read the notification that her order was ready. She let out a small sigh, realizing that now she would have to go pick up the pizza.

Setting her glass down on the kitchen counter, Isla picked up the house phone and dialed a number, reaching out to Mrs. K, the elderly lady who lived next door.

"Izzy, dear, how nice to hear from you," Mrs. K greeted warmly.

"Hi, Miss Kay. I'm so sorry to bother you, but I just got Ava and Tommy and need to run to the store and pick up Papa Pizza. I was wondering if you could watch them for like 10 minutes," Isla explained.

"Oh! Yes, of course. Send them right over!" Mrs. K replied cheerfully.

"Oh, thank you so much!" Isla expressed her gratitude and hung up the phone. She turned to her nephew and niece, a smile on her face. "You can leave your homework here. You're going to stay with Miss Kay for about 10 minutes, okay?" she informed them. They nodded and once again took off outside the door, with Isla following closely behind.

Isla locked the door behind them and waved at Mrs. K before hopping into her car. She turned the engine on, backed up from her house, and drove down the street to the pizza place.

"Dr. Lee, here's your order. Sorry about not being able to deliver. We're a little short-handed," the young boy behind the counter apologized.

"No, it's alright," Isla replied, smiling as she paid for the pizza. She walked back out to her car, opened the passenger side door, and carefully placed the pizza inside.

"Having guests, Mama?" Isla jumped, her heart racing, as she slammed the car door shut and spun around when she heard that husky voice. It became harder for her to swallow as her eyes darted around, realizing they were the only two there. Slowly, her gaze returned to meet his dark eyes.

"What?... What are you doing here?" Isla asked, her voice filled with surprise, as she stepped back, only to be stopped when her back hit her car.

"Well, it is a pizza place. What do you think I'm doing here?" he replied, taking a step forward, causing a slight panic to run through her body.

"Yeah, right. Okay, well, I'm going to go," Isla stammered, stumbling on her words as she tried to move around her car to get to the driver's side. However, her movements were halted when his hand came down to the window next to her head.

"You know, a pretty thing like you shouldn't be out here by herself," he said softly, his words sending a shiver down her spine. She could feel his breath on her cheek as she slowly lifted her eyes to meet his gaze. "There could be all kinds of predators lurking around." could be lurking around."

"I... I... umm..." Isla struggled to form coherent sentences. She was flustered, and he leaned a bit closer to her face, causing her to push her head back further against the glass, feeling trapped and vulnerable.

"You? You what?" he asked, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips as he looked down at her. Isla took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.

"I... I need to go," she said, mustering up her courage. She swiftly ducked under his arm, making her way around the car to the driver's side.

"I'll see you later" he said as She hurriedly got in, her head turning to look back out the passenger side window. She saw him standing a little distance away near his car. Without wasting any time, she put her car in reverse, backing up and leaving the pizza place as fast as she could.

"Thanks, Mrs. K," Isla said as she and her niece and nephew walked into the house. "So, I figured we'd eat pizza and all of us can go to my room to watch a movie," she suggested. She was too nervous to let them sleep in the guest bedroom by themselves now. The kids nodded happily, and she smiled sweetly at them, relieved to be back in the safety of her home.