"When you resume work, I'm sure you'd be too busy to do house chores." Mr. Sinclair's eyes were fixed on his laptop.
"That's why I'm employing a house manager."
"HOUSE MANAGER?" Isla was taken aback.
"Yes. The house manager will be with you and help you with house chores, especially when you've resumed work, or you feel too lazy and extra relaxed to do them yourself."
"Ugh! I won't have any privacy!" Isla grumbled.
"You're a child, Isla. You grow older in age, but your mentality is like that of a toddler. You just complained of being alone and now you want to have privacy! The house manager will be here whenever you need help and will even keep you company. You guys might even click as time goes on!" Mr. Sinclair tried to raise some positive effects of the house manager.
"I don't think I'd ever click with some maid - " Isla muttered inaudibly.
The sun rays from the window went straight into Isla's eyes and she felt quite reluctant to get out of bed. Then it hit her – her dad was going on a business trip and she'd be all alone – with a house manager!
She ran downstairs and was relieved to see her dad on a phone conversation. His boxes were all packed and he was about leaving for the airport.
"DAD!" She screamed faintly as the call ended.
"Good morning, Isla."
"You must be on your way. Have you taken breakfast?" Isla asked concerned.
"No, Isla. I need to leave for the airport as soon as possible. The house manager should be here in five minutes." Just about five minutes later, the doorbell rang. Isla was impressed at the house manager's promptness.
"Come in!" Mr. Sinclair called and the door opened. Isla's eyes were fixed to her dad's boxes before she tilted her head a little. The sight before her could only be described by hyperbolic words. His thick, black hair, three strands made to fall on his forehead. His eyes were captivating and dreamy. The shape of his nose made Isla recall some hot Hollywood actors, and his lips, gosh! They were pink and full, so full that she could already imagine herself drowning those lips in her mouth and giving them a slow rub with her tongue. He was well-built, visible from his tight T-shirt and pants. She couldn't stare for too long, she just closed her eyes and bit her lower lip without even realizing she had done it.
"Right, Isla?" She jolted back to reality. She hadn't heard anything. She had no idea her dad spoke though. She only smiled and nodded.
"Looks like she was lost in thought. She must be missing you already, sir." Isla rolled her eyes. She wondered why this stranger was suddenly trying to read her mind.
"You won't miss me too much, Isla. When you get to know Cade, you'll realize that he's friendly."
Before she knew it, her dad was gone and she was alone with the handsome house manager. She heard Cade slam the door and retired on the sofa. He took the remote control and was tuning it to a channel.
"HEY!" Isla swooped from nowhere and snatched the remote.
"This is not what you were employed for!" She thundered. Cade stared plainly at her.
"I'm Sinclair's house manager. Which makes it, my house for now. I can do whatever I want, whenever I think I can, okay? Please don't stop me."
"Its MAID, okay? What makes you think you're a manager?" Isla continued and Cade chuckled softly.
"Maid? A maid is someone who cooks, cleans and does petty house chores. A house manager is someone who takes care of things that are much more advanced than what a maid does."
"But you're gonna be cooking in this house, too."
"I make sure the house is in the right order before the owner returns. That's my job. Don't lecture me on what to do." With that, Cade snatched the remote.
"What do you really wanna watch that you're so possessive about?" She stood there, waiting for him to set his favorite channel.
"Oh. Looks like you're not as ridiculous as I thought. You watch Hollywood movies too."
"I do. What did you expect? Disney?"
"Something like that for someone like you who looks like a Disney character. An ugly, ugly, UGLY caricature." Cade chuckled again.
"I'm not gonna believe that. Now keep shut and let me listen." Isla stormed upstairs. She stood there, watching the movie from a far distance.
After almost an hour of watching, the main couple finally had their first kiss in a rose garden. Isla blushed on watching the scene. But the shy smile disappeared when three kiss images were flipping through her head. Her first kiss with Jake, Nigel and her late husband, Brian was quite unforgettable. She got up to leave but missed a stair and fell down the stairs. She passed out immedidately her head hit the ground.
"Hey!!!!" Cade ran towards her in shock. He lifted her in bridal style and took her to her room. She was bleeding from her leg and head.
"Isla, Isla, please wake up, c'mon." Isla's heart nearly flew out of her chest. Cade's face was inches away from hers, when he tried to shake her head and put a bandage on.
"Are you okay?" She felt dizzy at first, but Cade poured her a glass of water, and she felt better after.
"Thanks." Isla muttered gratitude.
"How did you fall then? You should have been more careful. Were you thinking about your dad?"
"No. I was in my right frame of mind." Isla lied.
"I don't want to believe that."
"I don't care whatever you believe. I'm hungry." Cade sighed.
"I'll be back." One hour later, Cade was back in the room with chicken noodle soup.
"This really helps in getting well and healing wounds. My mom made it for me when I was badly injured as a kid."
"But I'm not a kid."
"Will you drink up or continue to brag about being an adult?" Cade sounded stern. This was the first time a man would care for her in this manner. This was the first man, who was just like her father. Realistic and intentional. The two noticeable qualities.
She stared into his eyes, on every spoon. Very quickly, she was done with the soup and placed the plate beside her.
"Thanks again."
"Cade, have you ever come across fashion magazines or any model on the internet?" Isla was curious.
"Um, yeah."
"And you didn't take a second look at me when you came in here. You were just avoiding eye contact like I was some insectivorous feeder. Do you know who Rhea Sinclair or Isla Sinclair is on the Internet?"
"This is not the Isla Sinclair I see online. That Isla Sinclair is happy, dilligent, has a nice smile, beautiful and extremely hot. This Isla Sinclair before me is sad, lean, pale, annoyed, and inside of her is dark. She's lost in thought and her life is creepy. She thinks everyone's jealous of her. She lives like a spirit." Isla felt touched by his words. Everything he had said was true. On her face, there was a cute smile, in her mind, there were black thoughts.
"Your thought. I'm a celebrity, and my personal life is NOBODY's business."
"True. Celebrities are stone-hearted. They don't give a damn about people and they put themselves first. They are not friendly, and they can't fall in love." Isla chuckled at that.
"Who told you celebrities can't fall in love?" Cade didn't reply her.
"Can I have privacy?"
"You're the first celebrity I've met that needs privacy."
"It means, I'm different from all the rest." Isla pouted.
"Shoo." Cade rolled his eyes and left with the bowl. His eyes were dark and his frown made him look hot, at least.
"He didn't even ask if I needed anything else. He's that – selfish." Isla cursed.
"What ended the movie we were watching this morning?" Isla asked Cade, relaxing on the sofa while she watched him packing dishes from the dining table.
"The guy died at the end. I never saw that coming." He sounded cold, and Isla's heart melted. She closed her eyes tightly, recalling the moment Brian was pronounced dead in her presence.
"How did the girl feel?" Isla was fighting back tears.
"Terrible. She cried a lot. She never fell in love again – because she never got over it."
"How do you expect her to fall again? She was so attached to the guy. Death separated them, and it sounds horrible." Isla sighed.
"It does."
"The movie was so realistic. That's why its my favorite channel."
"So, you don't like fantasies, magic and adventure?" Isla folded her arms.
"I don't." Cade was already washing the dishes.
"What makes you think Bankrupt is a realistic movie? Sally was such a young girl. She had a fresh life ahead of her. Even after you said her love interest died. She was just 27. Do you really think she would just focus on her career, and not fall in love?"
"People fall in love once."
"That's a lie. I fell in love thr - " She stopped herself with panting. Isla couldn't believe she was about to share her personal life and past with a house manager she met barely 12 hours ago.
"Did I hear you say thrice?"
"Yeah. I meant to say, Sally could fall in love thrice." Cade shrugged as he arranged the dishes he had washed, and was cleaning the cabinets.
"She could. If you were the story writer." He smiled and heard Isla laughing hysterically. He was a bit proud of himself. He had made Isla Sinclair laugh in less than a day. He needed to know more about her. In the hours of day he had spent with her, he realized how sad she was. He wasn't so satisfied with Isla's laughter. He wanted more, he wanted it to be real enough. But at the same time, he felt, that wasn't his job here.
Isla went to bed that day and was furious that Cade pretended not to notice her. She closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep.
"He couldn't even say goodnight." Isla hissed. She opened her drawer and picked up a fantasy novel of 38 chapters. She has always loved novels as a kid and thought about being an author, but that same minute, she dropped that thought because she was the daughter of supermodel, Rhea Sinclair.
She wished her dad didn't leave her with such a two-face house manager. On one side, he cares, on the other side, he's strictly focusing on his job and not willing to have any talk with her.
The novel described the face and body features of the male lead, Justin. Isla could only have a mental picture of him, and he was no different from her sexy house manager, Cade.
Shit!
She didn't even remember how angry she was with him.
"You know what, I'm not gonna read this novel anymore." She said to herself. She tried to toss herself on the bed like a coin but was stopped by her throbbing pain.
Thick, black hair, could only imagine how soft and nice it would be to stroke, his dreamy eyes, his perfectly shaped, irresistible jawline, his pink lips, broad shoulders...
The tight T-shirts he wore could only display his broad chest and abs. His pants were tight too, and Isla could already feel herself having erotic thoughts. She clenched the sheets in her fist, and the imaginations continued, even when she was fast asleep.