CHAPTER 13

Exiting the tube station into the July heat, Bella had only a short walk to the office building where Rose rented a floor and as she stood in the foyer waiting for the lift to arrive, she still had no idea what she had let herself in for.

Edward had left for work before she'd been able to ask him any questions and all Bella knew was that Rose ran a small publishing company. She had no idea what type of position she was going to be offered and she was afraid Edward had bullied Rose into offering her a job which would be unsuitable for someone with her total lack of experience. The best she could hope for was that it was some sort of very junior position, in which she could make herself useful running errands.

Bella's apprehension increased when she stepped out of the lift to find herself in a reception area which was much smarter than she had been expecting. The frosty looking receptionist sized her up with one look, obviously found her wanting and after taking her name, turned back to sorting through a pile of glossy magazines. Luckily Rose's assistant Bree came to rescue Bella almost at once and Bella's spirits lifted as she was led into a bright and airy open plan office, where the atmosphere came across as businesslike but friendly, and to her relief most of the employees looked up and smiled at her as she was ushered through to Rose's office.

Rose was her usual mix of warmth and concern, overlaid with hyper efficiency, and she immediately got down to business. It turned out the job she was offering was an internship in the small art department. Lauren, who was basically the art director's assistant's assistant, was about to go on maternity leave earlier than she'd intended and Rose was offering Bella the job of filling in for her, either for the full duration, or if it suited Bella better, for just a few weeks until the job was advertised and a replacement found. Rose then gave a brief outline of what the work would entail, before taking Bella on a tour of the office and leaving her with Lauren to get a better idea of what her responsibilities would be.

Lauren talked nineteen to the dozen, but Bella gleaned enough from the one-sided conversation to make her think that perhaps she could do this. In fact, as she left the building half an hour later, having promised to give Rose an answer by the end of the day, Bella felt surprisingly enthusiastic. From what Lauren had described, the job mainly consisted of researching pictures, liaising with the printers and being at the beck and call of the art director. But it had also been hinted that Rose was planning on overhauling a small specialist magazine she'd recently acquired, with a view to expanding that area of the business and she would therefore definitely need additional permanent staff in the future to work on layout and design.

Although Bella had made it clear to Rose when they first met, that she no longer painted, her artist's eye and the practical commercial art training she'd received at art school, meant she did have skills which could be useful. At least it was better than waitressing and even Bella could see it was worth a try. The only thing holding her back was her fear of not being good enough and letting other people down, which was a frame of mind Alex had subtly manipulated her into from the day they met and which had gone into overdrive afterwards.

Nowadays Bella knew she was barely recognisable as the bright eyed and confident second year art student who'd applied for a part time job at Alex's gallery and then proceeded to take the art world by storm. When she met him Alex had already made a name for himself as an art dealer and consultant and he was also young, good-looking and charming. Barely able to believe her luck when he proceeded to wine and dine her and bombard her with extravagant presents, Bella was swept off her feet.

Within a month Alex had proposed, with the biggest diamond ring Bella had ever seen, and as Alex's girlfriend, Bella had quickly been accepted into the bohemian but moneyed layer of smart London society, where artists, pop stars, filmmakers and writers mingled in an intoxicating whirl of parties, first nights and society events. For a while Bella had burned as brightly as the fluorescent red of her dyed hair, which had become her trademark just as much as the bold colours and sweeping scale of the canvasses she was soon producing for Alex to sell in his gallery.

But the dream had ended as quickly as it had begun. Very early on Bella had realised that Alex had secrets and soon after she moved in with him, he began to spend longer and longer periods away, leaving Bella to organise shows and openings on her own. When she tried to question him, he became defensive and even aggressive and Bella realised he was also drinking too much and dabbling in drugs, which she knew were a hazard of the social circles they were mixing in.

Because she was in love with him, Bella hoped it was just a phase he was going through and tried to be as understanding and supportive as she could. But as time went on, even when Alex was at home, he seemed to spend more and more time with the male friends who turned up at all hours of the day and night. Often he didn't come to bed at all and on other occasions Bella woke up alone, to find Alex had suddenly left the house on urgent business.

In an effort not to become resentful, Bella threw herself even harder into her responsibilities at the gallery, her painting and her new social commitments and tried to enjoy her success. But following the scandal of Alex's disappearance and the almost daily revelations about his true business dealings and links to the Russian mafia, Bella's new circle of friends began to look at her with suspicion, which turned into open hostility, as rumours spread that many of the artworks they'd been encouraged to invest in were fakes.

The suspicion that they had been duped and swindled and the whispers that Alex was involved in money laundering and prostitution, sealed Bella's fate and the relatively small London art world closed ranks against her. Who could possibly believe she was innocent, when the tabloids had revealed that her own wedding had been used as a front for a massive illegal arms deal between 'wedding guests' who had conveniently flown in from all over Europe.

Many of the allegations in the press were blatantly exaggerated or untrue, but with Alex gone and therefore unable to defend himself, all Bella could do was try to maintain a dignified silence in the face of constant hounding by the press. Her life of parties, glamour and conspicuous consumption had come to an abrupt end and she quickly discovered that all the trappings of Alex's apparent wealth had been a mirage - apartments, cars and even the jewellery Alex had showered her with, had all been rented.

No one knew what had happened to the millions Alex was supposed to have made and what little money remained had all been swallowed up by lawyers' bills, as Bella endured weeks of questioning by the police. In the end all that was left were a few of Bella's clothes, including the expensive lingerie Edward had got glimpses of in their first few encounters.

Her paintings, which had previously made high prices, were identified so closely with Alex's discredited career, that apart from a residual novelty value, they were now almost worthless and in any case Bella had totally lost her desire to pick up a brush ever again. Bella's greatest pleasure, her livelihood, and her reputation as an artist had therefore all been destroyed along with her anticipated marriage, leaving her with nothing except her notoriety.

Eventually with no new information coming forward, after a whole summer of harassment by the press, interest moved on to newer stories and Bella was allowed to sink back into obscurity. Her bright scarlet hair and eye catching outfits had served as an armour which helped her through her ordeal, but afterwards she was more than happy to let them go.

Now usually dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, with very little make-up and long hair which she had allowed to revert to its natural dark colour, it was very unlikely that any casual observer would connect her to the notorious Izzy Swan. In addition, after all the fuss had died down, on her father's advice, she had changed her surname to her mother's maiden name. To add to the vanishing act, Tan's inheritance of her grandmother's flat had allowed them to move away from their old address and Isabella had been able to take up a completely new life as Bella Dwyer.

But it was not a life Bella thought she would ever be living and despite the brave face she put on, she had really done nothing more than survive since Alex had jilted her at the altar and vanished. Bella knew working for Rose was probably the best chance she was going to get of making a proper new life for herself and if Tanya had been there Bella knew she would have enthusiastically encouraged her to take the opportunity. She also owed it to Charlie and Sue to make an effort, because they so desperately wanted to see her happy again. So before she was even halfway home, determined to finally make something go right for a change, Bella phoned Rose and told her she would love to accept her offer.

How is Edward going to convince Bella to move in with him?

See you next Friday - Suki xxx