High Stakes (A Deal With The Devil)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Aiden

The thing about anger is it drives me to work harder in my businesses. And after the last few months of distractions, I’m relieved to be back doing what I do best. It’s been over two weeks since I last saw Bella. And this time has been much easier to stomach, mainly because I have no guilt weighing me down. Having my solicitor, Drake, as the go between, as also helped because I haven’t had to see her.

Drake sighs, and I already know I’m not going to like what he’s about to tell me. “Bella would like to sell the entire business to you.”

I frown, “She only started the business because of the money I gave her.”

“She doesn’t want to be partners in business.”

“I don’t give a shit what she wants. I have no idea how to run a cake business,” I snap. “I want half because I put money into it.”

He sighs again, irritating me further. “Technically you weren’t investing, Aiden. We both know the reason you gave Bella that money and it wasn’t to invest.”

“As I understand it, she hasn’t got herself a solicitor, Drake, so this should be easy. Get her to sign the damn papers.” I slam the phone down just as JP enters.

“Problem?”

“Bella won’t sign the papers.”

He shrugs, “I don’t blame her.”

“If it wasn’t for my money, she wouldn’t have the shop.”

“If you hadn’t of tricked her, you wouldn’t have paid her,” he counters.

“You should reason with her,” I say thoughtfully.

“No.”

“It’s not a polite request, JP. I’m your boss and I’m telling you to make her sign the fucking papers. ”

“You want me to go heavy on Bella?” I nod. “You’ve lost your mind. Why not just take it all, Aiden? She’s offering for you to buy her out and you can own it all.” The fact he knows this, pisses me off and he realises his words too late. “Fine,” he snaps. “I’ll go and see her.”

I pull my copy from the jar and slide them across the desk. “Make it clear. Half.”

Bella

I’m putting the finishing touches to an amazing five tier wedding cake. If I ever got married, then this is the cake I’d have. Decorated with hundreds of handcrafted, tiny daisies, cascading like a waterfall down one side of the cake. Trying to imagine my wedding when I feel so broken, is hard. But it’s not the first heartbreak I’ve felt. So, each day, I’ve pushed myself to get out of bed and paste on a smile. I’ve cheered brides on and made their dreams reality. All whilst silently suffering.

JP enters and I smile. He’s been checking up on me regular, although I’m certain he gets updates from Aria. “Wow, Bella, that’s amazing,” he says, eyeing the cake.

I take a step back to admire my work. “I know, right, I love it.”

“How are you?”

I shrug, “Pushing on. How’s Aiden? ”

He looks away, just like he always does when I ask. And I ask every time, because I can’t believe he’s getting on with his life like we never happened. “You know Aiden,” he mutters. “Actually, he’s the reason I’m here.”

“Oh?”

“He’s unhappy about your request for him to buy you out.”

“I know, Drake called me.”

“So, have you thought anymore about it?” he asks hopefully.

“I will not work with him, JP.”

“Technically, he’ll be a silent partner.”

I scoff, “When has Aiden ever been silent about anything? We both know that won’t happen.”

“So, make him sign something. Yah know, if you got a solicitor like I suggested, this wouldn’t be an issue.”

“I don’t have money to throw at a solicitor, and even if I found someone in my price range, Aiden would make sure his solicitor tore them to pieces. I don’t want to fight about this. I’m just asking he be reasonable.”

“I don’t think you have much chance of that right now.”

I groan. “I’ll talk to him myself.”

His eyes widen. “That’s not a good idea.”

“He’s not bullying me anymore. And does he think we can go into business and never speak? He’s acting ridiculous.” I pause, “Hold on, did he send you to put the frighteners on me?” After all, JP is the henchman. He glances down and I give a cold, empty laugh. “Leave the papers with me, I’ll take them to him myself.”

“Bella,” he mutters, shaking his head.

“Leave now or I’ll call for Aria.”

He narrows his eyes, “Unfair,” he whisper hisses before leaving.

It’s almost seven in the evening by the time I lock up and head for Tremos. It seems strange coming here when I know I’m not welcome, but luckily, the door is propped open for a delivery, and I scuttle pass the delivery guy and head inside.

Aiden is talking with a small group of men, but the second he sees me, he excuses himself and heads my way. He grabs the top of my arm, marching me towards the office, where he shoves me inside before slamming the door. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Didn’t your henchman warn you I was coming?” I ask, holding up the papers .

He places his hands on his hips and stares at the ground, “You didn’t need to hand deliver them.” I hate that he looks so good, and yet I feel so . . . lost.

“I like to face my problems rather than get staff to deal with them.”

“You’ve seen sense and signed them?” he asks, finally meeting my eye.

“Why do you want to share my business?”

“I paid for it,” he snaps.

“You paid for my virginity,” I counter, “To ease your guilt.”

“And now you’ve got your own back, you can sign half over, and we can move on.”

I narrow my eyes, “This isn’t a game to me, Aiden. I’ve built this business up and now you just want to take half to hurt me.”

“It’s good business sense,” he snaps.

“It’s a game. It’s all you know.” I cry out in anger, “Why do you want to share this when you hate me.” I think I see him soften slightly but he recovers quickly.

“Sign the papers, Bella.”

“I’ll sign,” I eventually say, “If you agree to be a silent partner.”

He scoffs, “You don’t have the right to come here and make demands. ”

“This is my life,” I cry, “You’ve already taken so much from me, and it’s clear you’re only doing this to punish me, so agree to be silent and I’ll sign the fucking papers, and you won’t have to deal with me again.”

He eventually gives a slight nod. “I’ll have Drake add the clause in.”

I hand the papers back to him. “Thank you.”

“Did he agree?” asks Aria the following day.

I nod and she claps her hands together, smiling. “That’s great news.”

I hate that I’m about to crush her dreams. “It doesn’t change anything.”

Her smile fades. “But if he stays out of the business, you can run it how you like. Plus, he can put in a cash injection. You can get some more equipment, expand to meet the demand.” I take her hands and tears fill her eyes. “Don’t,” she whispers sadly, “Don’t give me that sympathetic look.”

“I’m not leaving you, Aria.”

“You are,” she cries dramatically, and I can’t help but laugh. “If I can’t see you in the flesh, or touch you, then you’re leaving me.”

I nod in agreement, “You’re right. But we discussed this already, and you know why I have to do this.”

The shop doorbell rings, and I kiss her on the cheek before heading back into my shop where I find Aiden. I inhale sharply before composing myself. “That was quick,” I say, forcing a smile.

He hands me the papers and I take them over to the desk. “You should have someone read over that,” he mutters.

I pull a pen from my drawer and skip through the pages. “I’d rather just get it over and done with.” I spot the extra clause and turn to the final page. “How will this all work?”

“You’ll run things, and I’ll take half the profits,” he says, with a slight smirk. Just the thought of breaking my back for him to take half, makes me sick.

“And what happens if you decide you want more?” I ask, “How do I know this will be my final battle with you?”

“You’ll just have to trust me.”

I roll my eyes, “That’s the problem, I don’t.” But I scribble my name on the dotted line and slide the papers back to him. Our hands touch and I snatch mine away like he’s burned me. “Is that it, is the agreement done?”

He nods. “We’re officially partners.”

“Good, because I’m hiring a manager to run the shop.”

Aide n

I stare wide eyed. “What?”

She nods, as if to confirm her words. “I’m holding interviews at the end of the week.”

“Why would you do that? It makes sense for you to run things, you know the business.”

“You’re a silent partner, remember?” I almost whisper.

“That doesn’t mean you can pull shit like this,” I snap, angry she’s tricked me.

“You might be able to swan around here like you never felt a thing, but I can’t. I tried to ask nicely for you to set me free, and you refused, so I have no choice.”

“But you love this shop.”

She smiles sadly and tears balance on her lower lash as she looks around, “Yeah, I do, but lately it just reminds me of everything bad in my life.”

Her words hurt but I keep my expression stone. “What do you plan to do if a manager is running this place? Will you still bake the wedding cakes?”

She shakes her head. “No. I’m giving up on that dream too.”

“Bella,” I whisper. This isn’t what I wanted. Without baking, what does she have?

“Anyway,” she says, wiping her cheeks and forcing a laugh. “I’ll let you know who I choose. And I’ll be keeping a close eye on everything. Plus, Aria will be around to keep things running smoothly. It won’t affect your half of the profits.”

“It’s not that . . .”

“The decision is made, Aiden. Do you want me to call you, or should I call Drake with the details?” She laughs again, “I don’t know how all this stuff works.”

“Call me,” I say, turning to leave. I pause at the door. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“For once, I think I do.”

I glance up at the sight of JP in a smart shirt. “Are you meeting Aria’s parents?” I joke.

He scoffs, “No. We have dinner with Cal, his new girlfriend and . . . Bella.”

I frown. “A couple’s dinner, but with Bella?”

“I’m running late, I should make a move.” I stand and he hesitates. “Is she seeing someone?” He shakes his head. “So why do you look like you’re hiding something?”

It’s been a month since Aria hired some guy to work the shop. She landed on her feet with him being a baker as well as having managerial experience. And JP assures me he’s gay, but now as he edges towards the door, I’m wondering if that was a lie too .

“I can always turn up and see for myself,” I warn.

“You don’t know where we’ll be,” he says, smirking like a child.

“Bella Italia?” I guess and his smirk fades. She always goes there because she loves it.

“Fuck sake,” he mutters. “Aria will have my balls if she finds out.”

“Since when do your loyalties lie with Aria over me?” I demand.

“Since she took me back on the condition, I stopped telling you about Bella?”

I narrow my eyes, “Was that an actual condition?”

“You’re missing the point, Aiden. There are things Bella doesn’t want you to know.”

“Like when she was pregnant with my kid?” I snap. “Did you know about that too?”

“No of course not.”

“What is so important, Bella thinks I’d actually give a shit?”

“She’s leaving. Moving away,” he mutters. “But you didn’t hear it from me.”

It’s not the words I was expecting, and I stare for a few silent seconds. Then I take a breath and shrug. “Is that it, I thought it was something bigger. ”

He eyes me, knowing full well I’m talking shit. The news is the worst I’ve heard in a long time. “Now you know,” he mutters, leaving.

I wait for him to leave before swiping my hand over the desk and sending paperwork flying. Where the fuck is she going to go? All her money is tied up in the business. Is that why she wanted me to buy her out? Then I spend the next few hours, refreshing Bella’s social media, waiting to see if she puts pictures on so I can see who she’s with. Like that will somehow explain her sudden urge to pack up and go.

It's almost midnight when I spot Bella marching towards me. A small part of me is thrilled at seeing her. But I don’t budge from between the two women that are trying their best to get my attention. Bella stops at the table. “Can we talk?”

I place my arm around one of the women casually. “If it’s to tell me you’re leaving, I already know,” I reply in a bored tone.

“It’s not, well it is, but I just wanted to explain some stuff.”

“I’m busy,” I state and the women smirk .

“This is the last time you’re ever going to see me, Aiden. If you ever felt half of what you said, you’ll talk to me.” She marches towards my office.

I go after her, secretly desperate to hear what she’s got to say. We go into the office, and I sit in my chair, crossing one leg over the other at the ankle and waiting for her words.

“The morning I caught you with those two women,” she begins, looking uncomfortable. “That was the day I wanted to tell you the truth about the baby. I felt awful knowing what Laurie had done to you, and so I came to tell you then.”

“Only you didn’t,” I say, shrugging.

“No, because I saw the women and it threw me, I was embarrassed, so I left. You came after me and said you didn’t care about Laurie, that you felt relieved because you didn’t want kids.”

“I didn’t want them with Laurie,” I snap.

“How was I to know that?” she asks. “You seemed so certain.”

“What do you want me to say, Bella? That I forgive you? Because I don’t. There were so many times after that, when you could have told me. We were working things out.”

“I thought it would be kinder if I didn’t tell you,” she whispers, “So you wouldn’t have to feel the same pain I did. ”

My heart twists but I ignore it. “I felt it for you anyway,” I snap. “Don’t try and convince me you were sparing me. You lied because it suited you. I’m sick of women thinking they can lie their way in and out of anything.”

“Maybe you should look at why women lie to you, Aiden,” she snaps. “Maybe you should treat them better and they wouldn’t get hurt and do things that hurt you too.”

I roll my eyes, “Maybe you should be on your way.”

“I don’t know why I thought this would be a good idea,” she mutters.

“You wanted me to forgive you, Bella. And it hasn’t worked.”

“I thought I deserved the same forgiveness I showed you after you hurt me,” she says, nodding. “I was stupid to think you were that reasonable.” She pulls the door open, and I feel panicked, I’m not ready for her to leave.

“Where are you moving to?” I ask, hating that I care.

“Far away from here,” she says, almost looking relieved. “A fresh start.” She takes a few more steps then turns back, “Was it just kids with Laurie you didn’t want, Aiden?”

I smirk, “Are you asking if I wanted kids with you?” She gives an unsure nod. “No, Bella. I didn’t want kids with you either, especially not after everything. ”

She gives another stiff nod. “That’s what I thought.” And she leaves.

I sit staring at the closed door for a further few minutes before jumping up and running after her. I can’t let her leave, I love her. What the fuck was I thinking?