There is a difference between love and admiration. Sometimes people mistake it to be the same when it’s obviously not. Admiration is just the form of liking or looking up to a person because they did something remarkable. To love someone is to accept who they are, no matter what their past is or where they come from. I love my family and friends, but when it comes to Chad Montgomery, I don’t know if I admire him or even love him.
“We shouldn’t be here.”
Chad looked away from his menu to raise a questioning eyebrow at me. “Pardon me?”
I silently sighed, trying to ignore the stares people were giving us. Someone even waved hello.
“We could’ve just discussed this at my office—or yours. But, instead, you took us to a restaurant where people can see us.” I pointed out, knowing that the press were only around to snap pictures of us, and that tomorrow we’d be headlining every news station.
Returning to his menu, Chad took his time studying the dishes, not bothering to argue.
“If Harvey sees this…” I trailed off, before shaking my head, disappointed with myself for lying.
Secrets will come out in the end, no matter how hard you keep them. Eyeing my glass of red wine, I chastised myself softly. “You haven’t told him yet?”
“Told him what, exactly?”
Chad shrugged and set the menu down. “That we’re now business partners? That we’re only out together because of business? Surely he knows.”
I shook my head. “No. He doesn’t know that. My parents don’t even know that we’re partners, and, speaking of that, you are not allowed to tell them. I get to tell them since they are my parents, not yours.”
“Whoa! Slow down, sweetheart. Don’t start with the terms yet.” Chad held up his hands and gave me a small smile. “Are you really that excited to finish this dinner? Am I already boring you out?”
I narrowed my eyes at him, the urge to punch him very high, and it took all of my self-control not to. Mentally counting, I took a deep breath and smiled brightly.
“The sooner we finish, the better. I still have countless piles of paperwork that I need to sign.”
Before Chad could utter a word, the waiter arrived to take our order.
“Yes, I want steak and mashed potatoes,” Chad relayed, and turned to me. “You want a salad?”
Giving him a warning glare, I faced the waiter and smiled. “No salad. I want baked clams, smoked swordfish and pumpkin soup.”
The waiter nodded and wrote down our orders. “Your orders will be served in less than five minutes. Thank you.”
Once the man left to take care of the other customers, I took a sip of my wine.
“So, you like seafood?”
Clearing my throat, I set the glass down and nodded in affirmation. “I love seafood, don’t you?”
Chad looked down and shook his head, scrolling through his phone. “I have shellfish allergy.”
“Oh.”
“You’re going to say I’m missing out, huh?”
I softly laughed at his prediction, staring at Chad as he smiled. “Yes, I was going to say that. You truly are missing out, Montgomery.”
“Well, what can I say? I was born to reject it.”
My laughter died for a while and I settled my gaze on the folder Chad had brought with him. After a few seconds, the food arrived. The sight of the baked clams made my mouth water; I fought the temptation to dig in and forget about everything else. What can I say? I really love seafood.
“Enjoy your meals, Sir and Ma’am.”
Chad looked at me and grinned. “Before we eat, how about a toast?” I took my wine glass and raised it, Chad doing the same. “Cheers, to our partnership.”
“Cheers.”
We clink our glasses together, sipped our wine and began to eat. I hummed, heartily eating the delicious meal. I used to scold Harvey if he didn’t eat his baked clams, telling him that they were delicious. He disapproved but ate them anyway, and now he requested that we eat them every day, which surprised us.
“You’re enjoying your meal?” Chad asked, with a concerned look in his eyes.
I nodded vigorously. “Yes, thank you.”
After dinner, I felt content and didn’t order dessert. “Now, for the main event.” Chad opened the folder and passed the papers to me. “These are my terms, Maxwell,” he announced, sitting back as I read through them.
They were simple, really – nothing out of the ordinary. I mean, he’d helped me when I’d needed it the most, so it was only right for me to follow through. Without another word, I took the pen he provided and signed the contract.
“Thank you,” he muttered, as he took the paper and pen.
“Now that we’re done with yours, here is mine.” I took the folder that Arianne Howard, my temporary secretary, had prepared for me. “Everything you need to know is typed in there.”
Taking it, Chad began to read my terms over. “You don’t want to announce our alliance?” he questioned, looking up from the paper.
“At this moment in time, we won’t. We shall announce it once I tell you to. We’re not doing any shady business, so there’s no harm done in not announcing it yet,” I assured, folding my hands on the table.
Chad continued to read, laughing at some things, which made me curious. What is making him laugh? Did Howard misspell something?
“Seriously Rachel, this is it?”
“What do you mean?” I furrowed my brows at him.
Chad grinned. “Nothing. I mean, I was expecting a lot – maybe things that I can’t accomplish, but it turns out it's pretty simple.”
Well? What’s keeping you from signing it? Can’t we just get this over with? I want to go home since I’m very tired.
Without further ado, Chad signed and gave the folder back. I stared at his signature on the dotted line, internally cheering that it was finally done. I opened my bag to cross out ‘signing of terms’ on my to-do list.
“Is your company doing well now?”
“Yes, thanks for solving my financial problem.”
“Don’t mention it. But I can’t seem to stop wondering…” he uttered, which caught my attention, stopping me from crossing out the tasks that I had completed today. I looked up to see him already staring at me. The intensity of his gaze made me nervous. “The Maxwell family is one of the richest families here in America. So, why do you seek help? Why can’t you just, I don’t know, tell Mr. and Mrs. Maxwell about–”
“I prefer to be independent, Mr. Montgomery,” I cut him off, playing with my silver bracelet. “This is one of the many reasons why I can’t tell them. I don’t want them to be worried about my own company when they already have theirs to worry about,” I explained. “Since Harvey is still young, I have to prepare myself to take over. It’s part of my training to manage my parents’ company when they retire. I am an heiress, after all.” When he didn’t say a word but merely stared at me, I managed to crack a smile. “It’s embarrassing to see that a woman like me, who’s about to manage a big company, can’t handle a small one.”
“I…understand. You like your independence and will try your best.” I nodded at his words, sipping my wine until the glass was empty. “Speaking of your brother, Harvey, why is he so protective of you?”
I stopped short, the wine glass almost slipping out of my hands. “W-what?”
“Why is your brother so protective of you? I mean, I know men who are protective over their little sisters, but boys like Harvey are either busy with videogames or they don’t care about anybody but themselves. So, why is he like that?” Chad interrogated. “Did something happen?”
Out of all questions, why that?
“Um…I don’t know,” I mumbled, playing with the strands of my hair. “It’s in his nature I guess.”
Just as Chad was about to talk, one of the bodyguards that Dad had appointed to me walked towards us, which eased my nerves. “Miss Maxwell, your dad just informed us that it’s late and it’s time to go. The car is waiting at the back Ma’am,” he revealed, eyes covered by the dark-tinted glasses.
Even at night, they still wear glasses and look serious in their dark suits. It’s kind of silly. Oh well.
Turning to Chad, I gave him a smile. “I have to go. Thanks for the lovely evening, Montgomery. Goodnight.”
“No problem, Maxwell. Goodnight.”
Standing up from my seat, the guard took my coat, before placing it around me. I took my bag and folder before following the guards to the back door of the restaurant. My smile slowly disappeared and I bit my lip nervously, glad that I was out before he could go any further. That was close.
“Miss Maxwell?”
I snapped out of my thoughts to see the car door being held open. I entered the car, not wanting to stay any longer.
The moment the car got out of the alleyway, cameras started flashing left and right. Thank goodness the windows are tinted or the flash would make me go blind. The security of the restaurant made sure a path was made for us before our car sped away.
Once down the highway, I let out a sigh, rubbing my temples.
“Are you all right, Miss Maxwell?”
“Yeah, I am,” I answered, and took my phone out of my bag, checking for any messages, only to find two from Francine.
Francine: Hey Rach, are you free right now?
I guess not since you’re not replying. Hahaha, it’s all right. :)
I sighed, typing a quick message to her.
To Francine: I’m sorry Fran. ): I just had dinner with a business partner. We can have lunch together tomorrow.
A few seconds later, she replied.
Francine: Yeah, that sounds great! :D Let me guess, it’s that Chad guy, right?
To Francine: Yeah, but it was merely business Fran, don’t get ideas!
The car sharply swerved suddenly to the side. I let out a shocked scream, my phone slipping out of my hands. The sharp turn made me harshly collide with the man beside me, before it all came to a screeching halt. The two bodyguards seated at my sides, who acted fast, steadied me before I fell off my seat.
“Are you all right, Miss Maxwell?” Joseph asked fervently, obviously scared by what had just happened. A few cars behind us started honking at our car, which was stuck in the middle of the road.
“W-what just happened?” I stammered, sitting up from my hunched position, brushing away a few hairs that had stuck to my face.
My breathing was heavy and I felt dizzy. My vision blurred for a second. Did we hit someone?
“T-that car in front of us just stopped suddenly, I swerved our car to the right just in time. We could’ve hit it and got b-bad injuries,” Joseph said in a shaky voice, parking the car beside the curb.
“Did you get the license plate?” One of the bodyguards asked, his hand over the gun strapped to his waist.
“Yeah, I did,” the driver answered, before turning to me. “Are you okay, Miss Maxwell? I’m sorry if you’re angry or anything. I’ll file my resignation today.”
I shook my head at the man. “Don’t do it, it’s all right. I’m fine.” I reassured him with a smile and this calmed the man.
“Thank you for your kindness, Miss Maxwell, bless your soul. I’m really sorry about what happened.”
As soon everything was settled, we continued our way back to the house without any more trouble. Thank you, Lord. But the feeling of getting hurt at that accident caused me to freeze in my seat. What would’ve happened if our driver hadn’t turned just in time? I may be hurt or worse! And what if, the moment we’d turned, another car had collided with us? Oh dear. I picked my fallen phone up and placed it back in my bag.
“Miss Maxwell, we’re here.”
Percy opened the gates and let us in. The feeling of arriving home safely beat everything else at that moment. The car stopped in front of the house, the bodyguards climbing out first before assisting me. Henry opened the door and ushered us inside, but I noticed the moment I met his eyes that they were filled with relief.
“Rachel!”
I turned to see both of my parents running towards me in their sleepwear, their arms wrapped around me tightly in a few seconds. “Oh, we were so worried! Are you all right? Nothing hurts? What was that person thinking?! Rachel, dear, we’re glad you’re safe,” Mom rambled, in a rush that I barely understood.
“H-how did you know—?”
“Carter told us what happened. He sent a message,” Dad replied, and gestured to one of my bodyguards. “First thing tomorrow morning we’re going to find that reckless driver, bring him to prison.”
Just before I could say a word, Mother pulled me with her to the living room while Dad began giving out instructions to the security staff. “Dear, don’t tell your brother about this. He’ll just worry until it overtakes his mind,” Mom said, gesturing for me to sit on the couch and waving for the maids to leave us alone.
I furrowed my brows. “Mom, what are you talking about?”
She let out a tired sigh. “Harvey shouldn’t be involved in this. He should be focused on his education and not worry about his safety.”
“Mom, I think it’s better if he knows. I’m sure Harvey will be careful from now on—”
“No! He shouldn’t know!”
I stared at her with wide eyes, shocked by her sudden outburst.
“Please, Rachel, don’t tell Harvey. I knew this day would come but I never thought it would be this soon.”
What?
“What do you mean you knew? What’s going on, Mom?”
“Rachel, now I’m asking you to be careful. Don’t stay out too late, and if you’re going to the mall or anywhere else you have to bring your bodyguards at all times. You are not to wander around town alone. This is a very dangerous time for us, so please cooperate,” she pleaded, the wrinkles around her eyes now more prominent than before. “Listen to your father. There are people wanting to bring us down.”
“You mean someone deliberately wants us out of the picture?”
“Well, that’s what the private investigator we hired right after that ‘box’ incident told us this morning. He suspects some of your father’s rivals, but your dad thinks they wouldn’t try to do that. He expects it’s someone else.”
Someone else? If not one of his rivals, then who? Who would do this to us?
“It’s better if we take caution until we apprehend the one who’s responsible,” she adds, every word laced with worry.
“Helen?” Both of us turned to the door to see Dad come in with a tired expression. “I have the guards patrolling the estate, and I have contacted the private investigator. He’ll see us both tomorrow.” Exhaustion leaking through him, it was heartbreaking to see.
“Why don’t you guys just rest? Talk about it in the morning, since it's late and all,” I suggested, knowing how stressed-out they were.
“Darling, just go ahead. We’ll follow,” Mom replied, placing a hand on Dad’s shoulder, rubbing soothingly.
Giving them an encouraging smile, I waved at them. “All right, goodnight, Mom. Goodnight, Dad.” Kissing them goodnight, I took my bag and went up to my room.
I stopped in front of Harvey’s room, knowing that he was already sleeping. Opening the door silently, I peeked inside to see him soundly asleep on his bed, snoring loudly.
I giggled at the sight. Oh, Harvey… Shutting the door, I continued my way to the bedroom, yawning softly. Once inside, I stretched my arms and legs, ready to sleep. Removing my clothes, I slipped into my nightgown. Taking out the bottle of makeup remover, I poured a little amount onto a ball of cotton, not wanting to sleep with makeup on. I don’t want to scare off the maids by looking like a clown in the morning.
Turning the lights off, I flopped down on the edge of the bed. I stretched the tensed muscles on my back due to hours of sitting down in my office, groaning in satisfaction at the relief. I have to lessen that paperwork by tomorrow or it’ll never be finished.
The moment I tucked myself in and my head hit the soft pillows, I immediately fell asleep. The last thing I saw were the stars above me glowing in the dark room.
***
Ring!
I groaned at the loud sound coming from my side, the urge to throw the thing out of the window very tempting. Taking a pillow, I covered my head with it, hoping it would block out the annoying noise.
Ring!
Sitting up, I searched for the most annoying thing in the whole wide world at that moment, angry that it had interrupted my sleep. Seeing that it was my phone, I groaned tiredly. Yawning loudly, I glanced at the clock on my nightstand. I reached for my phone with one sleepy eye closed, the bright screen momentarily blinding me. Who could be calling at this time of the night?
“H-hello?”
“Hello, baby.” A voice answered, in a suave manner that woke me up.
Baby?
“Uh, who’s this?” I inquired, yawning once again as a chuckle erupted from the other line. I frowned deeply. “Look, I don’t want to be woken up just to hear laughter. Who is this?”
“Aw, don’t be like that, Mindy. I called all the way from France to hear your voice, which, by the way, is very strange. Do you have a sore throat?”
“I’m sorry, Sir, but you have the wrong number. This is not Mindy, and I don’t have a sore throat. Goodnight!” I huffed, ending the call in frustration.
I can’t believe I was woken up in the middle of the night just by some misguided caller! Putting my phone on silent mode, I placed it back onto the nightstand and tried to sleep again. But before that, I screamed into my pillow to belt out my frustration and fell asleep right after.
Blue eyes and charming smiles filled my dream, wisps of golden hair glistening underneath the rays of the sun. The moment I woke up, light came shining through where the curtains didn’t cover. Stretching for a few seconds, I climbed out of bed and hugged myself as I made my way towards the glass. The sky was not like it used to be during the day, the clouds were a bit gray and strong winds blew, the trees dancing. Memories of last night’s events came back in colors, some in gray. The dinner, the reckless driver, the secret, and even the annoying caller yesterday. And, the dream.
As if I’d caught myself, I shook my head multiple times, hoping the dream would go away. I mean, what’s so splendid about a dream…Chad?
“Ugh! Put yourself together, Rachel, you got this! It’s probably a mistake! Yeah, it probably wasn’t Chad! There are a lot of blond and blue-eyed men here! You didn’t even see his face, so why think it was Chad? And besides, it was only a dream, nothing serious.” Hearing someone knock, I snapped out of my rambling to see the maids entering, the usual routine starting once again.
“Good morning, young Mistress.”
I nodded at them in reply, before facing the glass wall and inhaling deeply.
Just another morning.