NO ONE ELSE COMES CLOSE

COLD

Isabella struggled to control her anger which was slowly rising. Angelo had described her as a w***e in her presence. As if that was not bad enough, he was pimping her out on a silver platter to this wanton stranger.

Isabella was so angry that her eyes stung from the tears she tried to inhibit. She made a promise to herself that she would pay Angelo back, even if it was the last thing she did.

The man whom Angelo had offered Isabella to, could not believe his ears. He expressed his appreciation by thanking Angelo and showering him with praises. The more he stared at Isabella's fair skin and beautiful face, the more he was enthralled. "I'm going to enjoy you so much baby" he said as he walked much closer to her and grabbed one of her butt cheeks.

Isabella smashed one of the bottles she was holding on the man's head, drawing blood immediately. As Angelo stood up to interfere, she threw the other bottle at him. He instinctively protected his face with his arm. The bottle shattered on his arm and he started bleeding as well.

Without waiting to see the result of her actions, Isabella took to her heels and ran out of the room. She felt very uncomfortable as the skimpy gown she wore was skin tight and the sandals were too high.

She stopped by a corner in the club, took off her shoes and wiped the lipstick off her lips. She knew that people were surely going to mistake her for a w***e and that broke her heart.

She regretted not bringing her phone along. It all made sense now. Angelo had deliberately taken her phone so she would be stranded and not be able to call for a cab. Well, she was not going to let him have his way.

She approached a guy who seemed decent in the club and asked if she could borrow his phone to make a call. The guy stared at her lustfully and instead asked her how much she wanted to charge for a night.

She sighed in frustration and walked away from him, she was thinking of the next person to approach when she saw Angelo and some of his friends coming through the corridor.

She quickly evaded them and ran outside the club. It had begun to rain and the sky was getting darker. Isabella could already feel the chills on her skin but she feared that if she dallied, she might end up in a rascal's bed.

She braved the rain and hit the road, ignoring the fact that she was cold. Angelo's house was a two hour's walk from the club. Fearing that she might be waylaid if she walked, she slowly started to run, while thanking her stars that she was a little bit athletic.

While she ran, a few drivers stopped their cars and tried to offer her a lift but Isabella politely declined. From the way they looked at her, Isabella could tell what they were thinking and she was not prepared to put herself in harm's way.

After running for while, she felt tired and was forced to stop. She was completely drenched and wanted nothing more than to take a hot shower. She suddenly noticed Angelo's car driving by and out of desperation, signalled for him to stop and pick her.

Angelo slowed down and waited for Isabella to get closer to the car, however, when she stretched out her hand to open the door, he drove off and left her there on the road.

Left with no other choice, Isabella continued running under the rain while seriously panting for breath. She still held the shoes in her hands and heaved a sigh of relief when she finally got to the entrance of the estate.

The security men at first thought she was a p********e because of the way she was dressed but she reminded them that she had accompanied Angelo in his car when he drove out earlier and that she was his wife. She urged the security men to check the footage from the gate's cameras.

When they had confirmed that she was telling the truth, the security men let her in. Having exhausted all her strength, she walked slowly while shivering until she got to Angelo's house.

She knew he was home because the lights were on and his car was parked outside. She knocked repeatedly on the door but Angelo refused to open the door. She did not give up but kept knocking on the door until Angelo opened the blinds and asked "what do you want?"

She faintly heard his voice and walked over to the window. She repeatedly told him to open the door for her but he made a sign by tapping his finger inside his ear to indicate that he could not hear her.

After that, he closed the blinds and went back inside the house. Isabella knocked on the door hysterically but there was no response.

It was more than evident that Angelo wanted her to die from the cold. She sat by the door, circled her arms around her knees as she shivered and finally gave way to tears.