Jayden's POV

I stir in my sleep, my lips parted and my eyes eventually fly open to see the darkness around me.

Someone must have turned off the light, I think to myself as I stretch my hand towards the bedside.

There is no bedside and it clicks. I am not in my mansion but the Academia hotel in Italy.

Hurriedly, I sit upright and search for my phone on the bed. I remember going downstairs to get coffee for myself and breakfast for Isabella which I don't even know if she ate or not.

When I came back up, I took a hot bath before jumping into bed and working on my laptop, expecting her to come out so we could talk but she stayed indoors till I fell asleep.

How long have I been sleeping? I ask within myself as I find my phone and press the button to check the time.

It is 6 pm which means I have been out for more than 5 hours.

Wow!

I can't remember how long I have slept this way before, even at night. I guess my exhaustion from the flight and my recent sleepless nights are responsible.

I find the light switch and flick it on before glancing around for the sight of Isabella. Why didn't she wake me up?

When my gaze falls on the table where I dropped her breakfast tray, I find out it is gone. I smile to myself.

Turning to the room where she was staying before I slept off, I throw the door open to see the emptiness of the room.

My brows are furrowed in confusion. Where did she go? How could she leave without a word?

I know we haven't cleared the air between us but that is because she isn't giving me a chance to say what I am here for. She isn't giving me a listening ear.

Romeo is no good for her. I can't let her date him. I can't let her get hurt.

Quickly, I rush back to the bed to grab my phone and dial her number. While pacing to and fro, the phone rings continuously but she isn't picking up.

It is infuriating to me. Why isn't she picking up?

I am about to drop the phone on the bed to wait for her when another thought jumps into my mind.

What if something had happened to her? She must have been gone for a long time. If she was around all along, she would have woken me up out of concern.

Has she gone back to America? I look around to see her suitcase still there beside the wardrobe.

Has she gone out to meet Romeo? That must be it. Romeo called her this morning and I'm sure he would want to meet up with her to find out who I am. Is she ok? Has he done something to her?

With a gasp, I grip my phone tighter and dash out of the room, running for the staircase instead of taking the elevator. If my speculation is right, then I will be doomed.

Romeo might hurt her. He looks like someone who can hurt her. He doesn't look like a gentleman who wouldn't force himself on a woman even if she doesn't want him.

He looks like the exact opposite of a gentleman but I won't allow him to hurt her.

With such a melodramatic sigh, I raise my phone as I move out of the lobby outside to see how everywhere is bustling with people and the realization that I don't have a car to begin the search party and I don't know where they are.

I dial Alejandro's number and he picks at the fifth ring while I begin to walk around, glancing up and down for a sight of that woman with long straight black hair.

"Hello, buddy", his voice is high-pitched tonight and I guess he is in a good mood.

"Alex, is Isabella with you?" I go straight to the point.

"Bella? Of course, not. I told you we took a break tonight and our tour will start tomorrow again", he reminds me. I know about that. He told me over the phone when I informed him before taking a flight down here that Isabella will be free throughout the day.

I just can't think of the right place to search for her.

"What happened?"

"I woke up and I can't find her", I say breathlessly, stopping at a junction and turning back to see how far I am from the hotel now.

Which path should I follow?

"She is fine, don't worry about her. I'm sure she decided to go out on her own tonight…"

"Do you know any Romeo?" I cut him short and he falls silent for a while.

"Romeo? Yes, the guy we bumped into…"

"Do you know where he stays?"

"You think they are together?" He demands and I roll my eyes. I don't want to give him the wrong impression. Probably about Isabella cheating on me.

"That guy came to look for her yesterday. I'm just worried he might have called her to hurt her or something. Does he even look like a gentleman to you?"

"Hey, calm down, man. Isabella will be back…"

"How sure are you?"

"I'm very sure, Isabella is a decent woman. Maybe she needed a gush of the air and she will be back. Just go back to the hotel and wait for her. I will give her a call now."

I sigh and squat down, facepalming myself. Why am I this troubled when I am not even sure that they are together? Maybe she went out to have a moment to herself.

Alejandro is right. Looking for her this way isn't the solution. I should go wait for her.

He disconnects the call. Reluctantly, I get up and drag my feet back to the hotel. I am still darting my eyes around to see if I can catch sight of her all to no avail.

This time, I take the elevator up and when it stops at the third floor, I get out and walk to the room. I realize I didn't even lock the room when I dashed out earlier and I curse under my breath.

I close the door behind me and walk to the bed.

Isabella needs to come back from wherever she went to. I hate how I feel right now. I hate to feel pathetic and miserable and that is how her absence is making me feel.

How can I be ok when I don't know where she is or what is happening to her?

I can't help but be worried. Maybe if I hadn't seen the so-called Romeo with my two eyes, I won't be having this stupid bad thought that he would kidnap her or rape her or kill her.

"F**k!" I shoot up to my feet again, baling my fist in anger for feeling helpless.

I stroll to the table where I dropped the breakfast for her this morning and lay my head on it when my arm touched something cold.

I glance up to see a bottle of red alcoholic wine.

Without checking the name or bothering to know how it got here, I pick up the glass cup next to it and open the bottle of wine.

Pouring a large quantity of wine into the glass cup, I take everything down my throat, then pour another and another till I am halfway done with the wine.

Looking for where to sit, instead of leaning over the table this way, I saunter to the other room to grab one of the dining chairs. I place it close to the table and sit on it to continue drinking my wine.

I am sure she will be back by the time I am done with this wine. I will use this to whilst away time and forget about the bad premonitions I am having about her absence.

Alejandro said she would be back. I want to believe that she will.

She didn't leave me when we were in New York, now is definitely not the time to leave. She doesn't know anyone or anywhere in Italy.

I just want her to be safe. She is my responsibility and I am answerable for whatever happens to her.

Just as I pour the last content of the wine into my glass cup, the door creaks open and a black-haired woman with striking blue eyes enters.

Isabella.

She is wearing a striped ribbed midi dress with her hair packed in a ponytail and a small midi bag slinged to her shoulders.

She looks gracious and I blink to be sure it is her and I am not imagining things.

Her eyes meet mine and we continue to watch each other for a few seconds before she tries to walk away without giving me a good reason why she was out without informing me but I am quick to get out of the chair and drag her back, her body colliding with mine and my hand snaking its way to her waist.

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