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p r i m a   v o l t a

[It.] : First time, first ending.

I WAS MORE than relieved to see Parker at the door that evening, with his suitcase in one hand and two bags of takeaway food in the other. He took one look at my face and swore under his breath. "So you saw him, huh?"

"That and more." Taking the food from him, I headed to the kitchen to set it down on the counter. "He helped me carry the coffee to my desk like the perfect gentleman he is." The memory was still vivid in my mind and I knew it was just one more to add to the list of everything I remembered about Kaden Bretton. "Was he there for business?"

"I wish," Parker scoffed. Shrugging out his jacket, he tossed it carelessly onto the sofa and loosened his tie before coming over to help me with the food cartons. "He was there for you."

Parker's words made me stop. My heart stuttered and for a moment, I could barely breathe.

"For me?"

My brother smiled sheepishly. "It's not the first time, Isla. He's been badgering Nolan and me about you for months now."

This was unexpected news. I knew that the aftermath of my meetings with Kaden had left a trail of destruction in its wake for all of us. But I had been a bloody self-absorbed fool who alternated between feelings of guilt towards Kaden and anger at myself for the way I handled things.

On the other hand, Parker and Nolan had suffered from the aftermath of the ruse in an entirely different way altogether. They were thoroughly tight-lipped about it, however, and all I knew was that they were blamed for suggesting that I was perfect for the job. Particularly when Lawrence and Adelaide Bretton found out what a massive liar I had been the whole time – agreeing to play Evangeline to fool Kaden and then pretending that he'd bought it to fool them. It was a double deception on my part and their anger was very much understandable. Parker and Nolan had shared the blame for allowing things to spiral out of control even though it wasn't their fault to begin with.

"Much better us than you, Isla," Parker had told me, when I offered to explain everything properly to Adelaide. "You can't afford to mess with them, trust me. They're proper furious and so overprotective of Kade that they might just slap a lawsuit on you."

So I had let that slide and properly removed myself from anything and everything associated with the Brettons. But Parker's disclosure now put things in a different light.

"Kaden's been asking about me?" I clarified, still feeling thoroughly shocked about the whole thing. "Why? But he doesn't even know who I am!"

"No, I meant the 'you' he'd been with during those seven meetings. He's been desperately trying to find you – and since his parents refuse to tell him a thing, he's turned to Nolan and me instead, trying to pry information out of us."

My sixteen-year old self would've been charmed off her bloody feet with this revelation. She would've thought it all too similar to Cinderella and started to wish upon stars in hope for her Prince Charming to find her.

But at twenty, I knew better and I was terrified. It was all coming back – all the horrid, terrible things I had said to him and the lies I had told that last meeting. How I had pushed him away when he clung to me and practically stomped all over the emotions that he'd so genuinely displayed for me.

In all likelihood, Kaden was equally as furious as he was desperate to find me and I hardly liked to think of how he would react if he ever found me. I was terrified of him finally finding me and looking into his eyes and seeing nothing but hatred reflected in them.

"Don't worry," said Parker, when he caught the glimpse of fear in my eyes. "I didn't say a word. And Nolan's surprisingly tight-lipped this time round."

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" I asked quietly.

"I didn't want you to beat yourself up over it. He's become a wreck ever since you left." Makes two of us, I couldn't help but muse. Parker sighed and continued, "honestly, Isla, I don't see why you wouldn't let him know who you are. You've told me that he deserves so much better than you. Well, fuck that – you're the best thing that's ever happened to him and he is nothing without you. And I'm not just saying that because you're my sister."

I smiled at that. Parker had a way of making me feel better by saying the sweetest things.

"You've also told me that you were – in your words – a frigid bitch to him," he smirked sardonically. "And that he probably hated you and you couldn't handle knowing he did. I can tell you this, though – he doesn't. You should see him, Isla, all he wants is to find you and he'd do anything if it means having you back in his life. So, technically, none of these reasons are valid."

Parker's words had left a bittersweet aftertaste in my mouth. I desperately wished for his words to be true – that Kaden didn't hate me and actually needed me in his life. But there was a more pressing reason which I hadn't told Parker, the reason for all my fears regarding this matter.

It came in the form of Adelaide Bretton. I remembered her threats clearly, practically engraved in my mind, regarding my family and Rosemary and Parker. Even though the press now knew about Rosemary and Dad, they didn't know the full backstory about their affair. And I didn't want to find out what else her threats entailed or the extent of her influence and power. That was a risk I couldn't take.

Parker noticed my silence and he smiled softly, reaching across the counter to pat my hand comfortingly. "I'm not saying you should let Kade know effective immediately. But just think about it."

I shook off his worries, forced a smile on my face and assured him I'd think about it.

It was a lie – there was nothing to think about.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

I had quickly settled into a routine by the second week of my internship Collins, Lee, Aisling & Assoc. I had a temporary desk in the administration office, where we handled mass emails and organising important information for ongoing cases. All in all, it was a tiring but satisfying experience at best. I didn't love the job – but I was contented and that was good enough for me.

The best part about working in admin was that there were merely nine of us in the office – far smaller than any other department in the company – and so we seemed more like a small-knit group of people who chatted as we worked. As an intern, I was more than a little shy to voice my input and was pleased to simply listen in to the conversation.

Then,one unfortunate afternoon, Parker had ruined it all by entering the adminoffice. The place immediately went quiet and everyone gazed up at him withpolite, somewhat scared faces. I was more than amused, because Parker washardly scary, but I supposed, as the son of the old boss, he commanded somesort of intimidation everywhere he went.

He ignored Jeanette, who had stood up to ask if he need anything, and headed straight to my desk. "Where do you want to go for lunch today?" He asked, with a bright smile. He spoke softly, but the place was so quiet that everyone heard it.

And everyone stared at me like I had just sprouted three heads.

The thing was – I'd kept my sibling relationship with Parker as low-key as possible. I didn't want people asking me about him or treating me differently because of that. Upon my insistence, Parker and I met for lunch outside – meaning we each drove our cars separately and met up at some diner to eat together. He was more than amused by the whole arrangement but went along with it in his good-natured manner.

But this arrangement was now ruined because he'd basically asked me out to lunch in front of everyone.

I shot him the dirtiest look I could muster and muttered, through gritted teeth, "probably a cemetery, since I'm mere seconds away from killing you."

He laughed and I could've sworn I heard Jeanette let out a stifled sigh from her desk. "I'll make sure to drop by again when I need my next dose of amusement," he mused before heading to the door. "Charge your phone," he tossed over his shoulder, before pulling open the glass door and stepping out.

I glanced down at my phone, only to realise the battery was flat. Which meant that Parker had tried contacting me via text, but had come down here personally since I couldn't be reached. I sighed and plugged my mobile into the charger, wishing that Parker could've at least been slightly more discreet about it.

The next thing I knew, Jeanette and several of the others had swarmed round my desk. "Did Parker Collins just ask you out to lunch?" Jeanette gushed, her eyes bright and inquisitive.

Thanks a lot, Parker.

I sighed and shook my head. There was simply nothing between Parker and I, ever. Parker was still too wrecked over his past relationship and I missed and loved Kaden more than the world. And so we could never see each other in the romantic way, never in the romantic way, because it just wasn't written in the stars.

"It's just lunch. We're – " and then I trailed off because I couldn't think of a proper way to describe it. How could I explain that we considered each other siblings but weren't really siblings because our parents were merely dating? " – we're old friends. We kind of grew up together." Which technically wasn't a lie, because Parker and I did spend most of our teenage years living together.

"Well? Tell us all about him," quipped Margo, who was barely a few years older than I was. She sat on the edge of my table, her eyes gleaming. "Does he play any sports? He looks fit as anything."

I told her that Parker adored playing basketball, but she wasn't satisfied with the answer. "And his muscles – " she began suggestively.

"They're in all the right places."

"You know I didn't mean it that way, Isla."

"I honestly don't want to know which way you meant it."

And that was just the beginning of a harrowing time for me. Over the next few days, I answered their persistent queries about Parker freaking Collins. About his cologne – Calvin Klein, although I didn't know which one it was because did I look like a guy? His dating life – no, he wasn't dating anyone. Did he like older women? No, I didn't think so, sorry ladies. And the sex?

I almost spat out my coffee when I heard that several days later. The question came from Brent, whose desk was next to mine.

"What about the sex, Brent?" I asked unsurely, taking another calming sip of my coffee.

"You know," Brent whispered conspiratorially, "How's he like in bed? Is he a dom or a sub?"

This time I really choked on my coffee. I sputtered, tears springing to my eyes and Brent reached over to pat me comfortingly on my back. Bless him. I wished I could give him a proper answer because I knew what a massive crush he had on my brother, but the words 'sex' and 'Parker' together was sufficient to give me a coronary breakdown. And I didn't mean the good kind of breakdown.

"I was taking the piss, by the way," Brent laughed, eyeing me in amusement when my cheeks flushed bright red. "I know he bats for the girls team, Isla. I just wanted to see your reaction."

I rolled my eyes. "You're horrid," I muttered but blew him a quick air-kiss when he feigned a hurt look.

Then we glanced up when we heard a warning hiss from Jeanette, whose head was turned in the direction of the lift lobby. Brent and I, who so happened to be the only other two in the office at that time, followed her line of vision.

Only to see Kaden Bretton striding towards the administration office, with Nolan Mortez trailing reluctantly behind him.

My heart leapt to my throat and I froze in my seat. Kaden looked thoroughly frustrated, his green eyes glinting with determination as he placed a palm flat on the glass door and pushed it open with purpose.

"I'd like to file a lawsuit," he announced smoothly, going right over to the main desk which Jeanette was manning. He brushed past Nolan, who had reached out to pull him back, and leaned his arms on the counter.

"This is bloody ridiculous, mate," Nolan hissed, nodding a quick apology to Jeanette, who looked thoroughly flustered. Then his gaze landed on mine and he did a double take, his mouth falling open in horror.

As surreptitiously as I could, I pressed a finger to my lips.

He nodded, shooting me a quick wink by way of greeting and turned back to the conversation Jeanette and Kaden were having. Jeanette had resumed her professional demeanour and, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, asked politely, "under what charges, sir?"

"Fraud," returned Kaden, without missing a beat. His voice was deadly, the coldest I'd ever heard. "Against Nolan Mortez here. And one of your lawyers here – Parker Collins."

The look on Jeanette's face would've been laughable if I wasn't so horrified at that moment. "M-Mr Collins, sir?" She repeated, looking absolutely lost. She glanced unsurely at Brent and me. "I-I don't quite understand."

I didn't either. Nor did Brent, whose mouth was so wide open I could almost cram a fist in there and he wouldn't even notice. I surreptitiously reached for my phone, typing a quick 'SOS' before sending the message to Parker.

"That's because he's stark raving mad," Nolan was saying, his cheery tone breaking the tense silence.

"I'm fucking lucid, Mortez." Kaden's tone was acidic. He sure didn't look like it. I noticed the dark circles under his eyes, the tired frown on his forehead. He turned back to Jeanette, his face calm and set with determination. "Where can I file my charges?"

"Right up your arse," muttered Nolan, rolling his eyes when Kaden shot him an icy glare.

"W-well," Jeanette stammered, still looking thoroughly flustered. "You can pick up an application form over there," she gestured to where Brent and I sat. The application sheets were laid out in two stacks, one stack on each of our desks. "But – I think it's best if you talk to Mr Collins before you – "

"That won't be necessary," Kaden assured her swiftly, before heading in my direction.

My heart raced as he approached but, to my greatest relief, he didn't seem to recognise me at all. His attention was focused solely on picking up the forms and he had just reached for the papers when Brent surprised us by slapping a firm palm over the stack.

"My apologies, sir," he said quietly, "but I'm afraid that this company will not offer its services to you." Kaden's eyes narrowed but Brent was hardly fazed. "You're about to file a lawsuit against one of our lawyers. I highly doubt that anyone here would want to represent you in court."

I didn't know how on earth Brent managed to sound so composed, but I applauded his courage and would've reached across to pat him on the back, had not Kaden been standing there.

"We have the best people, don't we?" A familiar voice mused from the doorway. All of us turned, only to see Parker standing there, the expression on his face an equal mixture of amusement and aggravation. "Brent's right, by the way," he added, heading towards Kaden. It wasn't until Parker flicked a quick glance at me that I noticed the glimmer of carefully concealed fear in his eyes. "None of my fellow colleagues will represent you."

"Yours isn't the only law firm around," returned Kaden evenly. But the temper in his voice was thinly veiled, as though he was struggling to keep his composure.

Parker sighed, his gaze landing on Jeanette, Brent and me. "Could you three leave us for a moment?"

We didn't need to be told twice. Immediately, the three of us stood up and headed towards the exit quickly, letting the glass door swing back in place behind us.

Once outside, Brent let out a sigh of relief. "That was intense," he mused, once we'd gotten a safe distance away, "what do you think they were up to?"

"I don't know," I returned distantly, but couldn't help casting a glance over my shoulder. Parker had gotten Nolan and Kaden to take a seat around the coffee table, but none of them were talking. Kaden's body language in particular seemed to be thoroughly closed-off.

"Do you think they'll need drinks?" came Jeanette's sudden question.

I blinked. "What?"

"You know how we always serve clients beverages." She wasn't wrong to say that. Whenever a client came into the office, we served them tea or coffee while they filled up an application or chatted with a lawyer. "You do it, Isla," she added, with a bright smile.

"Me?"

"Oh, trust me, I would love to do it. The three of them are quite something to look at – particularly the one with the temper; I'm such a sucker for men like him, with that mystery about him and his jet black hair and – "

"And smouldering green eyes, yes," murmured Brent absentmindedly, as he stared at the trio. Jeanette and I exchanged amused glances. "But oh, right," he perked up suddenly, as though finally breaking out of his trance. "Beverages. Serve them drinks, Isla. You're the only one who knows Parker well enough."

"Exactly," chimed in Jeanette, leading us both towards the rec room to presumably make the drinks. "Neither Brent nor I want to risk going in there and having our heads bitten off. Although, you know, I wouldn't mind being bitten in some other places. Remember how I was telling you guys that I really liked – "

Brent shuddered. "Yes, the vampire kink, we know. For fuck's sakes, woman, you never shut up about it. I've got half a mind to dress up as Edward Cullen to fulfil that fantasy of yours just so you'd stop talking about it once and for all."

"As if you could turn me on."

"Excuse me. I can be a very thorough lover to women if I wanted to." He sounded so indignant that Jeanette burst out laughing, before reaching up to give him a smacking kiss on the cheek, which he seemed sufficiently appeased by.

Once in the rec room, the three of us busied ourselves with making the drinks. I knew that Parker was a coffeeholic and so was Nolan. Kaden, on the other hand, drank tea strong and black. But I knew that making his drink exactly how he wanted it could be a dead giveaway, and so I held back, silently watching Jeanette and Brent make the drinks instead.

"I don't want to – " I began to protest when Brent handed me the tray of drinks. But a stern glance from Jeanette shut me up and I meekly went back to the office.

Thankfully, Brent accompanied me and held the door open. "Mr Collins," his voice made the three guys look up immediately. "Would you care for some hot beverages?"

Nolan's eyes glittered in amusement but Parker seemed rather uneasy as he glanced over at me. "Yes," he said, the caution in his tone evident, and gestured to the coffee table. "Just leave it here."

Brent nudged me in, letting the door swing shut when I entered. The tension in the room was so thick you could almost slice it with a knife. I stepped slowly towards them; desperately wishing that any one of them would have the sense to speak because I was certain they could hear my heart hammering in my chest.

I approached the table, trying to make as little noise as I could while laying down the cups. Nolan passed me a secret greeting my nudging me surreptitiously with his knee, since I was standing next to him.

"Do you have any food?" He asked me, in his most cheerful manner.

I shot him a dark look. I knew that he was doing this on purpose, taking advantage of the fact that I couldn't speak in front of Kaden.

His grin fell when I shook my head. "But I was hungry – "

"Shut up, mate," Parker thankfully intervened, before leaning back against his chair and turning to Kaden. "Listen, Kade, speaking from a completely legal perspective, you are aware that you have no chance of winning this case, right? Much less if you were to file one against your parents as well."

Parker's words made me freeze. Kaden was thinking about filing a lawsuit against his parents? What could he possibly be up to?

Kaden was all sorts of calm. "I know that. But these are lawsuits I'd willingly lose if it means having the press knowing all about them."

"So you're threatening us with bad publicity," Nolan said slowly, still sounding rather confused. "You want the press to know what frauds we are for having deceived you – is that your game plan?" When Kaden didn't speak, he shook his head. "Sounds rather desperate to me."

"Of course I'm fucking desperate," Kaden finally snapped, and I hastily set the last of the cups down before backing away. "Can't you see I'm grasping at straws here? No one tells me anything – not the both of you, not the staff at home, or my bloody parents! I have spent months, months, going around in circles. So fucking fine, I admit it – I'm desperate. I am going fucking crazy trying to find a girl I know almost nothing about because I fell for her in those – "

But he stopped as the tray slipped from my hands and clattered onto the linoleum floor.

Horrified, I sneaked a backward glance at the three of them, registering shock on Nolan and Parker's faces. Kaden, on the other hand, merely seemed frustrated – not with me, but with the matter at hand.

Blushing furiously, I quickly bent down and picked up the tray again, before pushing the door open with trembling hands and heading out of the office.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

My mind was in a whirl as I ran out to the balcony overlooking the busy street below. But even after I had caught a breath of much-needed fresh air, my heart was still beating frantically in my chest.

The main emotion that I was feeling was pure, unadulterated thrill. Kaden's words replayed themselves in my mind –

I fell for her.

It almost seemed too good to be true, but I was an optimistic person and I didn't want to brush it off so quickly.

But how? When? Why?

Was this the reason he didn't want me to leave? I had sensed that I'd grown on him over the seven meetings and that he was becoming used to having me around. I had loved that; I had always appreciated that. And, in the months that followed, I had entertained the thought of him perhaps having vague feelings for me.

But falling for me? Could the man who had everything he wanted in the world fall so easily for a girl whose name he didn't even know?

It was rather implausible but so, so heartening to hear. And for a wild, reckless moment, I wanted to race back inside to tell Kaden that I was her – I was the girl he was looking for.

But – no, there were other more important things at hand to deal with. The situation was fast spiralling out of control and I couldn't help but involve myself in it because it had a lot to do with me. Parker and Nolan's friendship with Kaden wouldn't be so strained if I hadn't been for me. If I had kept my distance better, treated Kaden with all the professionalism to begin with – perhaps we wouldn't end up where we were now.

There were so many people I needed to protect in this mess. There was Parker and Rosemary and my family – whom Adelaide had threatened to harm if I didn't leave Kaden. I had kept my distance from Kaden because I was terrified of her threat becoming a reality.

I wasn't going to fight fire with fire. But it seemed that whatever I did, I was igniting smaller fires all around, putting a strain on friendship and familial ties. Now Parker, Nolan and the Brettons were being threatened by Kaden.

And, more than anything, there were the Whites to think about. This whole ruse that Kaden's parents had cooked up almost seemed like an insult to Evangeline's memory. If news about the ruse spread to the press, the Whites would also be dragged into a mess that we had created.

One step at a time, I thought to myself. How you feel doesn't matter – not yet. Protect the Whites, Parker and Nolan by preventing Kaden from blowing this matter up. And the only way to prevent Kaden from doing this is to reveal who you are.

I inhaled deeply and headed back inside. My mind was now a jumbled mess of thoughts with one main purpose that flashed in bright neon lights in my head. Jeanette and Brent were chatting in the lobby, clearly satisfied with this unexpected break from work.

But Jeanette glanced up as she caught a movement in her peripheral vision. She noticed me and the features on her face scrunched with worry. "Everything alright, Isla?"

Forcing a smile on my face, I nodded. "Everything's fine. I just need to do something."

"But they're still talking – "

Her words fell on deaf ears as I hurried past her, intent on going into the office and setting things straight once and for all. It wasn't until I was standing in front of the door that I paused for a brief moment. Maybe I could –

– no, it was the right thing to do. I owed it to Kaden, and I had to do it for Parker, Nolan and the Whites.

Taking a deep breath, I placed my palm flat against the glass door and pushed it open. "You want to file a lawsuit?"

At the sound of my voice, the three of them turned. But my eyes were only riveted on Kaden, watching the expression on his face morph from startled to confused. His eyes stared intently at me, a slow realisation suddenly dawning on him and I resisted the urge to glance away and back out altogether.

He remembered, didn't he? He remembered my voice; he remembered how I sounded like.

I strode over to my desk and grabbed a pen, along with an application form before heading back to them. And with swift, brisk strokes, I scribbled my own name in the defendant box on the paper. "Go ahead. But leave everyone else out of it."

I straightened and held out the sheet to him, watched his eyebrows furrow as he read the edited words on the form. And then his eyes were flashing with an intensity that was almost indescribable, but I stood my ground all the same.

"Sue me."