CHOOSING BETWEEN TWO

Isabella's pov

My fingers trembled as I stared at the gleaming envelope sitting on my desk, its gold-embrioded letters shimmering under the office's fluorescent lights. Hunter Industries Annual Gala, it read, in elegant script, followed by my name in bold. I shouldn't have been surprised-it was a tradition for every employee to attend-but this year felt different. This year, the invitation was a stark reminder of just how out of place I was in this world of power and privilege.

With a soft sigh, I pushed the invitation aside and buried my face in my hands, my pulse racing with anxiety. It wasn't the thought of wearing a dress or mingling with the city's elite that made my stomach churn. It was the possibility of seeing him again-Ethan Ward, my ex-boyfriend, the man who had shattered my heart into a thousand irreparable pieces.

"Why do I always let myself get worked up over these things?" I whispered to myself.

Just then, a familiar voice cut through the air. "Worked up over what?"

I jerked my head up to see my friend and colleague, Sarah, leaning against the doorway of my cubicle, arms crossed, an amused smile on her lips. Sarah was my polar opposite-confident, outgoing, and completely at ease in the high-stakes corporate world.

"Oh, nothing. Just this," I said, holding up the gala invitation.

Sarah's eyes widened with excitement. "The gala? Oh my God, Izzy! This is your chance to show them all. You'll be stunning, and Ethan won't know what hit him."

I felt my heart tighten at the mention of Ethan's name. "I don't know, Sarah. I'm not sure I want to go. You know how I feel about those kinds of events, and-" I hesitated, "-about him."

Sarah's expression softened as she stepped closer. "Isa, I know you're nervous. But you can't keep hiding forever. You deserve to be seen-by everyone, including him. Besides, don't you want to show Ethan that you're doing just fine without him?"

I bit my lip. Sarah made it sound so easy, but the truth was far more complicated. It had been over a year since Ethan had walked out of my life, choosing someone else over me-someone more glamorous, more ambitious, someone who wasn't a constant source of insecurity like I was. Since then, I had done my best to piece my life back together, but the wounds were still fresh, and the thought of facing him again made me feel small and powerless all over again.

"I don't know if I'm ready," I murmured, looking down at my hands.

"Of course, you're ready," Sarah said firmly. "Look, you're an amazing woman, Isa. You just need to believe it. And if you ask me, there's no better way to make a comeback than at the gala. Who knows? Maybe you'll catch the eye of someone important." She wiggled her eyebrows playfully.

I let out a weak laugh, shaking her head. "I highly doubt that."

Sarah grinned. "Oh, I don't know. I've heard that Alex Hunter himself is going to be there. You know, the man who runs this entire company. Word around the office is that he's single and very, very eligible."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm sure he doesn't even know I exist."

But even as I said it, my mind drifted to the few times I had seen Alexander Hunter around the office-tall, impeccably dressed, and always surrounded by an air of authority that made everyone take notice. He was elusive, rarely making appearances outside of high-level meetings, and yet, he had a presence that was impossible to ignore.

"Don't be so sure," Sarah said, giving me a wink. "You never know what could happen."

*******

The day of the gala arrived faster than I had expected, and as I stood in front of my bedroom mirror, I felt a familiar wave of dread creeping up my spine. The dress Sarah had helped pick out for me was beautiful-a floor-length, deep emerald gown that hugged my figure in all the right places, with delicate lace detailing on the sleeves. It was far more elegant than anything I had ever worn before, but despite the beauty of the dress, I couldn't shake the feeling that I didn't belong in it.

"You look amazing, Isabelle," Sarah said from behind me, breaking me from my thoughts. "You're going to knock them dead."

I tried to smile, but it came out more like a grimace. "I hope you're right."

***********

The grand ballroom of the Manhattan Hotel was nothing short of breathtaking. Crystal chandeliers hung from the high ceilings, casting a warm glow over the room filled with New York's elite. Waiters weaved between the guests, carrying trays of champagne, while the soft hum of conversation filled the air. I stood at the entrance, feeling like an imposter in a world I had no place being.

"Come on, let's get a drink," Sarah said, linking her arm through mine and steering me towards the bar.

My eyes darted around the room, searching for any sign of Ethan. I knew he would be here-he was a regular at these kinds of events, always rubbing shoulders with the rich and powerful. The thought of running into him made my stomach twist, but I forced myself to take a deep breath. I can do this, I said to myself.

But just as I started to relax, I heard a familiar voice behind me.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Isabelle Harrington."

My heart sank as I turned around to find Ethan standing there, a smug smile on his face, his arm draped casually around the waist of Victoria St. James. She was even more stunning in person-tall, blonde, and dressed in a designer gown that screamed wealth and status. Everything I wasn't.

"Ethan," I managed to say, my voice barely above a whisper.

He looked at me from up to down, his smile widening. "I didn't expect to see you here. You look... different."

It was meant to be a compliment, but I could hear the underlying condescension in his tone. I forced myself to stand tall, even though all I wanted to do was run and hide.

"Thanks," I muttered, hating how small I felt in his presence.

Victoria smirked. "Nice dress. Where did you get it? The clearance rack?"

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment, but before I could respond, a deep voice cut through the tension.

"Is there a problem here?"

My breath caught in my throat as I turned to see none other than Alexander Hunter standing beside me, his sharp grey eyes fixed on Ethan and Victoria. His presence was commanding, and for the first time that evening, I felt a flicker of hope.

Ethan's smug expression faltered slightly. "No problem at all. Just catching up with an old friend."

Alex's gaze shifted to me, his expression softening ever so slightly. "Isabelle, care to join me for a drink?"

For a moment, I could only stare at him, stunned that he even knew my name. I glanced at Ethan, whose smile had faded completely, and then back at Alex. A small, unfamiliar feeling of confidence bloomed in my chest.

"I'd love to," I said, my voice stronger than it had been all night.

As Alex led me away from Ethan and Victoria, I couldn't help but feel that maybe, just maybe, this night wasn't going to be so terrible after all.

Isabella's pov

Alex and I walked down to the bar, my inside going wide. What is happening? I never in a million years thought that Alex would actually talk to me or even stand close to me.

"What drink do you want?" Alex asked snapping me out of my thoughts

"Huh?" I looked at him confused about what he said.

He then repeated himself, "What are you going to drink?"

"Oh, red wine would be okay," I said to him, my head bent down to avoid his stares. We ordered our drinks and in a few minutes, the bar attendant brought the drink.

I flipped my drink as a way to calm my nerves, my hands slightly shaken. I wasn't facing Alexander but I could feel him staring at me.

"Isabella?" he called my name, his voice and thick Italian accent made my name roll off his tongue like white wine.

I turned to him but still couldn't meet his eyes "Yes sir."

He gave me a light smile, "You don't need to be that nervous, I don't bite and also my name is Alexander or you can call me Alex." He introduced himself like nobody in their right sense didn't know who he his.

I cleared my throat "Sir.....you are my boss, I can't call you by your name. It won't be proper."

He dropped his glass of whiskey and exhaled "I guess so but we are not in a formal setting, you can call me by my name I insist"

I smiled at how polite he was and nodded to the proposal, "I guess that can work."

We stood in silence for about five minutes, watching the ballroom filled with people. Different people socializing, people dancing. My eyes scanned the room for Sarah but she was nowhere to be found and it wasn't something I wanted. She has abandoned me and is hooking up with someone.

Just then, Alex leaned closer and whispered something into my ears, "Did you come alone?" he asked me.

"No, sir.....sorry Alex, I didn't" I replied.

He looked around, his eyes searching through the crowd "So.....who are you here with?" he asked again which surprised me.

My eyes flickered around hoping I would be able to see Sarah, "she is around here somewhere."

"Oh..... I see."

Just then a lady walked in our direction, slim and tall with long black. Her gown shimmering under the chandelier light making her stand out. Her hair and makeup told you who she was before she could introduce herself.

Everyone in the city knew who she was, the famous Monalissa Gray, the ex-girlfriend of Alex and the daughter of the biggest tech companies in the world.

She had a bright smile as she stood before Alex but I can't say the same for Alex. He looked like he had just come into contact with trash.

She waved slightly "Hey!" but Alex ignored her and I'm sure it was going to sting. I immediately waved back to make it less awkward

"Hey! I'm Isabella" I introduced myself. Monalissa turned her attention towards me, she looked at me for a while before ignoring me.

I guess that's my cue to leave now. I dropped my glass of wine and turned to leave but Alex held my hands.

"Hey, Bella, come dance with me," He said and my mouth dropped down in surprise.

"Wait, what........no.....I can't dance" I whispered to him, at this point, Monalissa looked like a fuse blew up in her.

"Doesn't matter, You just have to follow my steps, okay?" He looked at me, his grey eyes drawing me in.

I exhaled loudly "Fine!" He gave me a big smile, his full set of teeth on display. I could swear I got turned on just by his smile. He held out his hands which I took and led me to the dance floor passing by the raging Ex-girlfriend.

Immediately we walked into the dance floor all eyes dropped on us and I swear, I wanted to pee on myself due to my anxiety. I looked out at the crowd, and to see hundreds of people staring back did something to me.

Just then I spotted Ethan in the crowd and he did not look too pleased about the recent development. Alex noticed me staring and used his hands to bring my face back to his.

"You don't have to worry about them, okay? It is just me and you for now" He calmed me down. His grey eyes looked at me like I was the only one who mattered. I nodded and held his hands as the song began to play.

We both did not take our eyes off each other, twirling and spinning. I could hear the clicking of the camera but I was scared of looking out from Alex's eyes, at least we lost the connection.

The moment was magical and when the song ended, the applause from the audience was deafening. We both did a bow and stepped down the stage, people still videoing and taking pictures of us, mostly Alex though.

My eyes finally found Sarah and she gave me a thumbs up and a silly smile, indicating a 'I TOLD YOU SO' which I just laughed off. My eyes then trailed from her to Ethan and for the first time since we broke up, I couldn't be happier than to see the reaction or expression on his face.

"Let's get out of here" Alex whispered, taking me by surprise.

"Where are we going?" I asked, "I came with my friend, I can't ditch her" I countered.

"I'm sure she won't mind"

I looked back to Sarah and she looked like she was having a good time and not ready to go.

"I guess I can text her," I said and he smirked.

"Great now, let's go" he held my hands and we walked out of the venue drawing everyone's attention.

Monalissa's pov

Alex ignoring me is one thing but choosing a flimsy excuse for a girl over me did not suit me well. I took a picture of her and sent it to my private investigator with a text

"Get me her details in the next hour"

Isabella's pov

After we left the party, it was an amazing ride home. Alex and I connected, and it was surprising anytime I thought about it.

We went to get something to eat from a fancy restaurant, we chatted about different stuff and it was like we'd known each other our whole life.

Seeing Alex from afar, he looked like a cold, rude, and very egomatic person but getting to sit with him, talking to him, and sharing opinions about different topics made me realize I was wrong.

When we were done eating, he paid the bill and we left the restaurant and he drove me to my house. It was a beautiful moment, our hands occasionally touching, my blushing face. The car was silent but I could still feel the connection between the both of us.

He arrived at the front of my apartment, it wasn't anything fancy and I did not mind.

"Thanks for the ride sir" his eyebrows went up and I chuckled realizing what he meant, "Sorry.....Alex."

He smiled, "It was fun with you today.....hope

we get to do this again" I nodded and turned to walk in, he waited till I got in before he zoomed off.

Throughout the night, I had a smile on my face till I slept off.

************

My alarm went off, I stretched and got out of bed. It was going to be a good day and I could feel it. I played music with my phone and I danced happily, I walked to the bathroom, took my bath, and when I was done. I picked up a black gown and a four-inch heel. I did my makeup and brought my hair up into a Ponytail.

I was done and when I looked at myself in the mirror, unlike other days I felt fulfilled. I walked out of my house and took a taxi to work.

The moment I stepped foot into the company building, I heard people murmur. Just like that, my high self-esteem was cut short. I could see them looking at me, pointing and whispering. I checked my dress but it wasn't it.

I took the elevator to the third floor where I work under the marketing team. I got out of the elevator and immediately I stepped into the office, I could hear them whisper. I took a deep breath and tried to ignore it as I walked to my desk.

I turned on my laptop and tried to start my work for the day. The little glances and whispers eventually died down as everyone got back to work. The day rolled by smoothly till it was lunchtime, I still had work to do but the others had gone for their lunch break.

Just then I heard a tap on my table and when I looked up it was Sarah.

I smiled at her, "Lunch! Give me a minute" She drew a seat closer as she waited for me.

"So.....miss popular, how was your night when you left?" Sarah asked and it surprised me about the question and what she called me, then it clicked.

My eyes widened at the realization, "fuck..... is the reason why people had been whispering and pointing about what happened yesterday? Oh my goodness it is just a dance"

"A dance with the hottest, the richest, and crude CEO of our company. Girl, you caused so much of an uproar" Sarah explained to me and I face-palmed myself.

I closed my laptop, I couldn't concentrate anymore "Okay, let's go for lunch." We walked to the cafe across from the company and still the staring and whispering continued. We picked a table and placed our order.

"Is this what it feel like to be famous or associated with a famous person?" Sarah asked, obviously enjoying the experience.

"Girl, it's getting out of hand. It's just a silly dance"

She looked at me, her face held a smirk "It isn't just any dance! The CEO danced with you. He barely has any physical interaction with his employees and always has this cold aura but he did not only talk to you, he danced with you"

I rolled my eyes "Enough, I forgot to tell you I ran into Ethan and Alex rescued me"

Just then Sarah squealed so loudly, I had to cover my ears "Girl, your knight in shining armor and then you both had that dance, gosh I would have paid top dollars to see Ethan's face"

I chuckled, remembering his expression, " I won't lie, that was the best night of my life."

"And it's all thanks to me. I told you that it was going to be nice"

I rolled my eyes again, the waitress brought out our orders, we ate as we discussed yesterday night and she told me about hooking up with Alex's secretary in the bathroom. I stopped her before she went into details.

We paid for our food and immediately left the cafe and walked back to the office, with Sarah blabbing about her one-night stand and how good the sex was. She swore not to have caught feelings but she won't let it go.

We got into the elevator and before it closed, someone joined in. Sarah clung to me in excitement, which I did not feel.

It was Monalissa and our first experience together was not as pleasant. The elevator moved up and we were on floor two when she pressed the emergency stop button and the elevator stopped.

Sarah and I exchange glances, confused about what's going on. Monalisa took off her glasses and adjusted her coat as she turned to look at me.

"Isabella right?" we heard her say and I nodded. She looked at Sarah, then back at me.

"Hmm.... Interesting. I know we got off on the wrong foot yesterday at the party, it was normal but let me make this clear, that little moment between you and Alex should not be stuck in your head, it was a one-time thing to make me jealous. He was using you, I don't know why he thought it would work but anyway..... you've had your fun and left out your fantasy. Just stay clear of Alex"

When she was done, she pressed the exit button "Get out." she said in a cold tone and I immediately dragged Sarah out, who was already fuming