*Isabella's POV*
"I was behind on my tuition, and the Dean won't even let me take my finals," I said, the words rushing out in a torrent of shame and frustration. "I can't pay it. I have no money." I looked down at my hands, unable to stand the cold weight of his gaze.
"And why were you so reluctant to tell me?" he asked, his voice sharp, like he was interrogating a witness.
"Because I don't need my goddamn boyfriends to pay my tuition!" I retorted, my head snapping up, a flash of my old fire returning. "No, no. I'd prefer not to graduate at all." The words were defiant, but they tasted like a lie even to me.
"Isabella," Damien said, his tone shifting, becoming calmer, more reasonable, which was somehow even more terrifying. "It's not your boyfriends who will pay your tuition. You know the company can pay tuition for employees, right?"
"Yes, yes, we do," Jacob added, jumping in, eager to help. "You just have to sign a contract."
"No contract," Damien countered, his voice flat, final.
"What do you mean, 'no contract'?" Jacob sputtered, looking at his brother like he'd grown a second head. "You know that means employees can't leave the company for, and..." Jacob was saying, but Damien cut him off with a look that could freeze hell over.
"Isabella signs no contract," Damien said, his voice a low, dangerous command that left no room for argument. It wasn't a discussion; it was a fucking decree.
"But..." Jacob tried again, but Damien completely dismissed him, turning his full, terrifying attention back to me.
"Isabella," he said, his voice suddenly shifting, becoming casual, almost bored. "My meeting was so fucking boring, it's a surprise I didn't fall asleep. I need coffee to function. Can you please make me one?"
I just stood there for a second, my head spinning from the whiplash. One minute we were discussing my entire future, the next he was asking for coffee like I was just his secretary again. The power move was so blatant, so fucking effective, it left me speechless.
"You got it," I said, my voice quiet. "I'll be right back." I turned and practically fled the office, leaving the two of them alone in the suffocating silence.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
The moment the door clicked shut behind Isabella, the fragile truce in the room shattered. Jacob spun around, his easygoing demeanor replaced by a look of frustrated confusion.
"Okay, what the fuck was that?" he demanded, gesturing toward the door. "You know we pay college tuition for this, but the catch is that all employees who take it have to stay for five years. It's standard procedure."
Damien didn't even turn from his desk. He just stood there, staring out the large window overlooking the city, his reflection a cold, unreadable mask. "She is not 'all employees,'" he said, his voice low and flat.
"She's not 'all employees'? She's our girlfriend, Damien!" Jacob shot back, his voice rising with exasperation. "And you don't think straight when it comes to her. Don't you want her around? This is a surefire way to keep her here!"
Damien finally turned, his eyes like chips of ice. "I think you're the one who doesn't think straight, brother. Of course I want her around. As my girlfriend, and as my employee. But as long as she wants to be. Not because of some stupid fucking contract." He took a step closer to Jacob, his intensity filling the space between them. "I mean, did you see what that girl can do? Did you even bother to work with her, or were you just trying to get into her pants from day one? She's brilliant. She's effective. She's made for this. And if she ever wants to expand her horizons and work for another company, then I want to be the one who gives her the experience to do it."
"And she can get that experience inside Lancaster Corp!" Jacob countered, refusing to back down. "We have tons of departments she can choose from. She can grow here, with us!"
"She's not signing any contract," Damien said, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous growl that was an unmistakable final command. "Not on my watch."
Just as Jacob opened his mouth to argue further, the door opened again, and Isabella walked back into the room, two steaming mugs of coffee in her hand. The two brothers, locked in a silent battle of wills, instantly masked their conflict, their expressions smoothing over as if the heated argument had never happened.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
*Isabella's POV*
I walked back into the room, and the air hit me like a physical fucking wall. It was thick with hostile tension, a silent, angry storm brewing between the two of them. You could cut it with a knife.
"I made you both coffee," I said, my voice a little too bright, a little too cheerful. "Is everything all right?"
"Yes, it is," Damien responded.
"No, it's not," Jacob countered at the exact same time, his arms crossed over his chest, glaring at his brother.
Great. Just fucking great.
"I'll speak with Kim from finance," Damien said, completely ignoring Jacob, his tone all business again. "You will have your tuition paid by tomorrow."
My eyebrows shot up. "Just like that? Don't I need to sign a contract?" I asked.
"Yes, you do," Jacob said, at the same time Damien shot him a look that could curdle milk. "Isabella," Damien began, letting out a long, weary sigh like he was dealing with a difficult child. "If you ask around the company, we do that. We pay college tuition, but we request that the employee will stay with us for a set period."
"Okay?" I responded, my voice small, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"Jacob here, for whatever reason, wants you to sign the contract," Damien said, gesturing vaguely at his brother. "But I don't think that's necessary. I want you to be free to go wherever and whenever you want. You are smart, Isabella. You'll need exposure from different environments to truly grow."
But I was barely listening anymore. I was lost in thought, my mind reeling from their conflicting reactions. I was surprised by both of them, really. Jacob's desire to lock me down felt... possessive, a little suffocating, but also kind of sweet in a fucked-up way. But Damien... Damien's reaction was something else entirely. I had to admit, it would be a fucking relief to know I could walk away whenever I wanted. Maybe one day I'd wake up and just not see myself in this company anymore. Although, a small part of my brain argued, it wouldn't be entirely fair to them, to just take the money and run.
But Damien... he was being so sweet. So fucking sweet, believing in me like that, not wanting to tie me down with a contract. It was a side of him I was still getting used to, the boss who saw my potential instead of just a body to bend over his desk. And fuck that did things to me.