A Twist Of Fate (Fate #1)

15

When we get to my brothers place I say to Nico. "Thanks for the lift home. I'm also going to give Xanthe a chance. You should too."

He shakes his head. "I'm going to stay well away from her. If it had been her sister at the studio then maybe I would have considered giving it a go with modelling."

"If I got in touch with Yasmin, then would you go with Joanne and I to the shoot?"

"Sure, I'll even talk your brother into it as well. If that makes things easier."

"I would like that. Are you going to come inside and finish off the meal with my parents? I'm sure you're going to love the entertainment that's going to happen when they see that it's me living with my brother instead of another girl."

He smiles. "I'm looking forward to the free show." He whispers. "At least you won't see them for a couple days as we're leaving tomorrow."

A smile spreads across my face. "I'm looking forward to you being the pilot and me going back to being a flight attendant."

"Are you serious?"

"No, I hated being a flight attendant. I had to deal with a lot of rude people who tended to get that way after flying hours on end. If I would have been rude to them I would have lost my job in an instant which is something I would have hated. I loved being able to travel the world. It just made it harder to find someone to start a family with."

He nods. "I know how you feel. For me it's the woman that have been a challenge. All they want is my money and the man I am. Sometimes I wish there was a woman that would come into my life without a price tag look in her eyes."

I laugh. "You'll find her, Nico." I walk through the front door and head towards the kitchen where my parents are sitting.

They look at me as I walk through the door with Nico at my side.

Mom stands up and she looks at me. "Arabella, is that you?"

"Yes, Mom." She walks over to me and throws her arms around me. "I'm glad you're home. We've missed you so much."

I step out of her embrace. "How are you happy to see me? The last time I saw you, you told me I was a mistake and that you wished you had taken care of me when you found out you were pregnant."

Mom looks at the ground as a tear falls down her face. "I wasn't well back then, Arabella. I had depression back then and it took a while for someone to notice that I wasn't myself. Can you please forgive me?"

Dad stands next to Mom and places his hand on her arm. "Honey, I'm not sure right now is the time to tell her everything. If she needs proof that you were unwell I will send the appropriate paperwork to her so she can tell that you're telling the truth." He looks at me. "I know you don't trust us at the moment, but we would like to have a second chance with you in our lives."

Alex walks into the room with Joanne behind him. He looks at everyone. "Is everything okay?"

Mom nods. "Its fine, Alex. Let's finish dinner."

"I'm not hungry." I tell them. "Joanne and I ate at the restaurant."

"Can you sit with us Arabella? I would like to get to know the woman that my daughter became." Mom says, with a smile on her face.

She seems to be telling the truth about wanting to get to know more about me. It just makes me wonder if there's a hidden agenda to what she wants.

My Mother has always been a snake. She takes information freely from people and when they wrong her she can hold it over their heads for everyone to know.

I'm not going to play into her hands like she wants me to. The best way out of things is to lie to her. That way nothing will bother me if she spills the beans because it won't be true.

I sit quietly at the table with my family waiting for my mother to say something.

She looks at me. "What have you been doing since you left home?"

"A bit of this and that. I don't have anything that I need to brag about. We all know how you like to brag about your son owning a company alongside his best friend, but I haven't done anything that will make you proud. I have travelled the world and met a number of great people."

My phone starts to ring and I see an unfamiliar number on the screen. "Excuse me. I have to get this call."

Me: Hello, this Belle.

Voice: Hey, Belle. It's Yasmin. You spoke to my sister Xanthe this afternoon about a photo shoot.

Me: Yes, that's correct.

Yasmin: She also told me that she had a run in with Dominic. Is he with you?

Me: Yes, I'll get him for you.

Turning around to face everyone at the table I say. "Nico, I have someone that wants to talk to you."

He stands up from the table and walks over to me. He whispers. "Who is it?"

"Yasmin."

Nico walks into the spare bedroom and I follow him. He puts the phone on loudspeaker so I can hear the conversation.

Nico: Hello, this is Nico.

Yasmin: Hey, Nic. It's been a long time since I've heard from you.

Nico: Yas, what do you want?

Yasmin: Xanthe was telling the truth about wanting your friends and you to do the shoot. Please, say you'll do it. I need 2018 faces for the shoot.

Nico: Fine, I'll do it. Can the shoot wait until next weekend? I have a business meeting that I have to go to with Belle.

Yasmin: That's fine. My photographer will be at a movie premier this weekend.

Nico: Tell your photographer that we'll be at the studio at 10am. Send the information to Belle's phone.

Yasmin: I will.

Nico: Goodbye, Yas.

Yasmin: Bye, Nico.

He hangs up the phone and turns towards me. "We're going to the shoot. I hope you're happy with talking me into doing something that I never wanted to do."

I take a step toward him. "They'll have suits for you to wear. It's something you wear every day of the week anyway." I touch his arm and whisper in his ear. "You look hot in the suits." I walk away from him with a smile on my face.

Alex looks at me as I enter the room. He looks behind me before saying. "Where's Nico?"

"He'll be here shortly. He just needs to recover from the phone call he had."

Mom looks between Alex and I. "What's going on between Nico and you, Bella?"

Looking at her I say. "Nothing,"

Nico leans against the door. "I have to pack for a business meeting. It was nice seeing you again Mr. and Mrs. Mason." He starts to walk towards the door. "I'll see you tomorrow, Bella." He walks out of the house.