Chapter Seven
1194 Words
The next day, Max appeared at the bar during Gia’s afternoon shift. Sharon was coloring at her usual corner table when she spotted him.
“Max! Max, you came back!”
She ran toward him, and before Gia could stop her, Sharon launched herself at his legs in an enthusiastic hug.
Max caught her carefully, his hand resting on her curly head. “Hey there, little one.”
“I missed you! Mama, look, it’s Max!”
Gia approached, wiping her hands on her apron. “Sharon, let the man breathe.”
But Max was smiling. “It’s fine. Actually, I’m glad you’re both here. I wanted to talk to you about something.”
“Okay…” Gia’s stomach fluttered nervously.
Max crouched down to Sharon’s level. “Sharon, how would you like to come to my house? It’s really big, with a garden and everything.”
Sharon’s eyes went wide. “Really? Can I, Mama? Please?”
Gia looked at Max questioningly.
He stood, his expression serious. “I meant what I said yesterday. About the arrangement. I have everything prepared. We could go to the registry today, make it official, and then I’ll take you both to the house.”
“Today?” Gia’s heart raced. “That’s so fast—”
“I know. But if you’re going to say yes, we need to move quickly.”
Gia looked at Sharon, who was bouncing on her toes with excitement. She thought about their tiny apartment, the exhaustion of working two jobs, the fear of not being able to provide for her daughter.
She thought about Max’s kind eyes and gentle hands when he’d held Sharon.
“Okay,” she heard herself say. “Okay, let’s do it.”
Two hours later, they stood in the registry office. Sharon served as their witness, bouncing excitedly and declaring it “the best day ever.”
Gia signed her name—Gia Haynes-Larson—and tried not to think about how insane this all was.
When they were pronounced husband and wife, Max leaned down and whispered, “This is just for show. But thank you. For trusting me.”
“Don’t make me regret it,” Gia whispered back.
Then they were in Max’s modest car driving through increasingly upscale neighborhoods. The houses got bigger, the lawns more manicured, the cars more expensive.
Finally, they pulled up to a beautiful mansion with a circular driveway.
“Welcome home,” Max said.
Sharon pressed her face against the window. “We live here?”
“We live here,” Max confirmed.
Inside was even more impressive. Marble floors, soaring ceilings, elegant furniture that looked both expensive and comfortable.
Sharon immediately ran to the living room and started jumping on a white leather couch.
“Sharon! Stop!” Gia rushed after her. “That couch is expensive! You could break something!”
“You can let her play.” Max appeared beside them, smiling. He sat down next to Sharon, and she immediately started telling him about her stuffed animals. “It’s just furniture.”
“This neighborhood is beautiful,” Gia said when Sharon paused for breath. “What exactly is it that you do for a living? Sorry for asking so many questions.”
“Nothing shady, I promise.” Max grinned. “I’m actually—”
His phone rang. He pulled it out, frowned at the screen.
“Excuse me.” He answered. “What is it, Charles?” His expression darkened. “Alright, I’ll be right there.”
He hung up and turned to Gia apologetically. “Sorry. There’s a security breach at the office. I need to go check it out right away.”
“Oh. Of course.”
“We’ll talk when I get back, okay?” He stood, running a hand through his hair. “Make yourselves at home. This is your house now. All of it.”
He headed for the door, walking quickly.
After he left, Sharon tugged on Gia’s sleeve. “Mama, Daddy works at a security place?”
“I guess so, baby.” Gia looked around the beautiful house, confused. “He must be really good at his job.”
Sharon shrugged and went back to playing.
Gia settled on the couch, still trying to process everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. She’d gotten married. To a man she barely knew. And moved into a mansion.
Her life had become completely surreal.
A sleek black Bugatti Divo with a distinctive plate number—ML-001—glided through the private entrance of Maxlarm Corporation, surrounded by a convoy of security vehicles. The entire executive team had been assembled, waiting.
Charles Kim, the chief secretary, stood at attention as the car came to a stop. He hurried forward and opened the back door.
Mr Larson stepped out.
At thirty-two, he was the youngest CEO in Maxlarm’s history—and the most successful. Tall, impeccably dressed in a charcoal three-piece suit.
“Your private entrance is ready, sir,” Charles said, falling into step beside him.
“Thank you, Charles.” Max’s voice was clipped, efficient. “Status update on the security breach?”
“Contained, sir. It was an attempted hack on our R&D servers. Our team stopped it before any data was compromised.”
“Good. I want a full report by end of day.”
“Yes, sir.”
They entered through a private elevator that went directly to the executive floor. The building hummed with activity, but Max’s presence was a secret to most. He preferred it that way—operating from the shadows, letting his work speak for itself.
As they passed through the executive corridor, Charles briefed him on the day’s schedule. Board meetings, investor calls, contract negotiations. The usual.
At the main lobby, two receptionists were gossiping by the front desk.
“We’ve been working here for five years and we’ve never even seen that guy’s face,” one whispered, watching the elevator close on the executive floor.
“The CEO likes to keep a low profile. Apart from company directors, not even managers have met him face-to-face.”
“That’s so weird. How can you run a company from the shadows?”
“Shh! Someone’s coming. Act natural.”
They straightened quickly, plastering on professional smiles.
Back at the mansion, Sharon was playing with her dolls when she spotted something on the couch.
“Mama! Mama, look!” She picked up Max’s phone, running over to where Gia was sitting with her laptop, working on some freelance articles. “Daddy forgot his phone!”
Gia looked up, taking the device from her daughter’s hands. “Oh no. You’re right. He must be very anxious without it.”
“Should we go give it to him?” Sharon asked, bouncing on her toes.
Gia hesitated. She had Max’s card with the office address, but showing up at his workplace on their first day of this arrangement seemed… presumptuous.
But then again, what if he needed his phone for something important?
“Okay,” she said finally. “Let’s get ready and take it to him.”
- Writer
