Williams rose alongside Rock and moved to another table, grinning sheepishly like a new groom.
Rock glared at him, his lips pouted awkwardly. "Who is she by the way? I noticed you were staring at her the last time at the club, and then now. Spill it already."
Williams exhaled, still smiling. "I really do not know anything about her. Her name? She's not spilling even that. She asked me to search for it.."
"Search for it??" Rock's eyes widened with bewilderment. "You must be kidding me, right?"
"And why should I joke with something like that?" A soft chuckle rang from Williams lips and then he went mute.
Rock pondered for a few seconds, his hands clasped together. Suddenly, he cleared his throat and moved closer to Williams.
"I have an idea. Would you like me to try it out?"
Williams was quiet at first, then he shrugged his shoulders. "What exactly are you planning on doing?"
Rock rose to his feet and gently hit him on the shoulders. "Watch me!" He grinned and made his way to the counter where a waiter stood by.
"Hello sir! Good afternoon," she greeted, a charming smile laced to her brows.
"Good morning to you.." he winked at her and watched her blush. "Can I get a few minutes of your time?"
She nodded her head vehemently with the smile still on her face. "Sure sir! What would you like sir?"
"That lady over there," he pointed towards the lady who Williams had spoken to earlier.
"Do you have any idea who she is or do you know her name?" He leaned forward, his gaze locked in hers.
"Are you perhaps talking about Ma'am Isabella? She owns this place.."
"Wow! That's nice. So her name's Isabella? Such a pretty name for a pretty lady. Do you know anything else?"
The waitress frowned. She didn't seem to trust Rock, especially with the questions he was asking. "No, I don't. If you don't mind, I'd like to attend to other customers.." She walked away before he could utter another word.
He sighed and quickly returned to Williams who was patiently waiting for him.
"Isabella. That's nice.. She's got a very good name. I think she also owns this nice restaurant. That's cool," Williams said after Rock explained what the waitress told him.
Williams grinned to himself and tore out a paper from his notepad. He scribbled some words onto it and signaled to one of the waiters.
"Kindly hand this note to Miss Isabella over there." He said in a soft whispering voice.
Williams watched the both of them from the corner of his eyes as he dug into his gut again. He heard her laugh and then she uttered some words to the waiter.
His curiosity got the better of him, and he was dying to know what her response was. The waiter arrived just in time. "What did she say?" He asked with enthusiasm.
The waiter had fear in his eyes and shook all over. "Would you mind if I wrote out her words?"
Williams' hands clasped together and rested on his broad chest. He nodded his head and watched the waiter write on the paper.
"Here it is, sir." He handed it over, his hands shaking all over, and breezed off.
Williams ran his eyes through the paper, and with every read, the smile on his face intensified
He warmly rose to his feet and was going to speak to her when his phone rang.
His gaze rested on it, and a loud hiss accompanied it. It was his mother, Mrs. Albert. "What does she want this time?"
He picked up the call but uttered no words. "Hey Williams. Williams.." She sighed and forged on. "I know you can hear me. I need you at the firm right away!"
She hung up before he could protest, leaving him no choice but to do as she said.
*****
"The nerve? Wait, he's developed feelings for you? Doesn't he know who you are?" A loud voice rang in the air, reverberating through the room where Isabella was.
It was her personal assistant, Chloe. She was filled with rage after hearing what happened at the restaurant where Isabella had gone.
"Williams Albert.. Such a dick head... If only he knew who he was dealing with, he wouldn't try to be friends with you .." Chloe chuckled, her hands clenched into fists.
She rolled in her chair as she continued to speak with Chloe. "Actually, I seem to like him as well but I'm not sure.. He's Williams Albert afterall and you know what it means, right?"
"You like him? You must be kidding me, right?" Her friend Chloe, asked with her eyes almost bulging from their socket.
"Yeah.. but it's nothing anyways. Nothing's ever going to bring us together, so it's not something to worry about.."
Chloe cleared her throat, her gaze fixed on Isabella. She didn't seem to believe her words.
"I'm sure they must be investigating who disrupted their plans. Let's see what they are able to come up with." She placed her hands and, with them, supported her chin.
Isabella grunted and suddenly turned her head toward her assistant. "Any news from our spy at the Alberts?"
"There's none for now, ma. I'll confirm with him to see if there's any new development," she said.
The assistant had barely completed her words when her phone rang. "speaking of the devil. He's the one calling right now."
Isabella, with firm eyes and confidence, adjusted herself to the chair. Her curiosity had shot through the roof, and she was craving information—one that could induce more wealth for her.
Minutes later, her assistant got off the call and began to divulge everything their spy had brought to her attention.
"I see… how interesting.. A party for all their gang leaders and members? It would be fun if I attended, don't you think?" She grinned.
Flabbergasted, her assistant's eyes bulged. "You're kidding, right? You're not really planning on going there?"
"Do you think I would joke with going there? You say the party is two days from now? I need to get ready then."
TWO DAYS LATER...
All was set. The frenzy in the camp of Albert knew no end. They were filled with so much excitement and couldn't contain themselves.
It's been two years since such a large celebration was held in their camp, and they were all thrilled, all except one person.
"Is there a need to hold this at this time? We have just lost five hundred million, and I don't think we should be partying right now," he said while in her office.
Mrs. Albert rose to her feet and walked to where his son had his ass glued. A malicious grin formed on her face as she glared at him.
"Don't you think you're too hard on yourself, Williams? Five hundred isn't such a big amount and you know that. By the way, it's been a long ritual for the gang to gather every member at least once a year. You're aware of this, and you're also aware that we couldn't hold it last year as a result of your father's death.
"Oh goodness! I know all of this already, mom. I see no reason why you're going back to it. I never said we shouldn't hold the party, did I? All I'm saying is now isn't the right time."
"Phew! I'm your mother, and here I am, insisting the party should be held? Are you really going to defy me?"
Williams sighed, his hands racing through his hair. He had known his mother was going to resort to what she did. Left with no choice, he flung his hands in the air.
"Fine then! The party will be held." She grinned and dismissed him.
It's been two days since that conversation, and all preparations for the dinner have been made.
Every hotel and lodge in the city had been booked to their capacity, just as expected. Every member of the Albert gang was already in the city that night.
Against his wishes, Williams had gone on to check out the location of the dinner. It was at one of their hotels, the largest in the city with the biggest hosting capacity.
"How many members are we expecting in total?" said his assistant, who stood beside him, hands clasped together.
"According to reports from gang leaders, we should expect a total of one thousand members."
Williams was dumbstruck. He turned toward his assistant with a weird look. "Really? I never expected such a population. Are we on track with our preparations?"
"Yes sir! We made preparations for a little above a thousand, sir."
Williams sighed in relief and went on with his check. Everything seemed right before him, so he didn't waste so much time before returning home.
As his car pulled up in front of his house, he sighed, muttered a few words, and found his way out. A flashback whizzed through him.
He remembered Isabella and couldn't get her out of his head. He could still feel the feel she had planted on his cheeks earlier that day.
Oh, it made him develop goosebumps and he couldn't wait to see her again.
****
It was the night of the Alberts' dinner party. All was set, and the guests had begun trooping into the hall in their numbers.
William didn't seem so excited, but he had to stick around for his mom. He never had an interest in it from the beginning.
A ton of leaders from across the gang walked up to them, bearing smiles and greetings that were grudgingly received by Williams.
"It's so nice to see you again, Sir Williams," one of them said. He was quite stricken by age but still had the strength and agility of a youth.
"Same here as well, Mr. Roberto. It's been two years since we last met, if I'm correct."
The man nodded his head in response, a weak smile complimenting his looks. "Your father must be so pleased wherever he is with how well you've managed his business since his demise."
Mrs. Albert sighed. "I hope so... If you don't mind, I'd like to be excused. I have some other people to meet with." She vanished before Williams got a chance to protest.
Infuriated, he sighed but managed to keep up his conversation with Mr. Roberto.
"So what's the plan? I'm sure you're aware the competition has become tougher than it used to be."
"Really?" Williams chuckled. "I do not see them as a competition. They are no match for us," he said, but paused abruptly as his eyes caught a lady walking in
He was dumbstruck and couldn't believe his eyes. "You must be kidding me, right?"
A confused Mr. Roberto followed his gaze until it rested on her.
"Don't tell me she's a member of our gang?" His heart skipped a beat and he was totally elated.
It was Isabella.