Reyona pulled her mind away from silly thoughts when she realised that she had totally missed what he was saying to her.
She blinked at his amused face and quickly remembered what he had said before.
"You can just call me Dexter," she said quickly.
"Dexter," he said, as if he were rolling the name over his tongue. "I like it," he said with a thoughtful nod to himself.
"Glad you do," Reyona said sarcastically.
"I was wondering when that would come out," he said as he reached for the folder on the table.
"When what will come out?" she asked.
"The biting comment. I think I missed it."
Reyona smiled relunctantly.
She couldn't believe that there would be a day that she would use the phrase at ease in the same breath with him but at the moment, that was what she felt.
The jittery feeling she had as she tried so hard not to think of what was going on right then had somehow disappeared.
Maxwell pulled out the sheaf of papers in the folder and passed it to her.
"You can take your time to read through it," he said as he leaned back into the armchair he sat on.
Reyona could see that he had already signed.
He wasn't lying.
Reyona was the reason why the cooperation had not commenced earlier.
Reyona could feel his eyes on her as she carefully read through the contract.
She suddenly had the urge to smooth her hair or check her face to see if she had something on it.
But since that would only give him the satisfaction that she was bothered by his look, she stubbornly focused on reading the fine print of the contract.
They seemed fine to her, not that she expected a reputable company like Multilinks to pull a fast one on her but then...
"Are you sure you should be here right now?"
His words interrupted her train of thought. "What?" she asked, confusion evident on her face.
"I mean, I know we have an agreement to meet this morning but I was thinking you will probably call ahead to say that you will be late or even send one of your henchmen," he said with a keen look on his face.
"Hench... why would I suddenly choose not to come?" Reyona asked with incredulity.
"Because I was thinking that it would be a hell of a day, you know."
Reyona wondered if he was drunk. He had seemed lucid to her the night before until they separated, but still...
"Did you change your mind? Is that why you have the time to come here today?" he asked in a serious tone.
Now, Reyona was certain of it.
Something was definitely wrong with him. Something tells her that he was not talking about the contract.
He was…
Reyona's heart thumped as she realised what else he might be talking about.
Reyona stood up hastily as she stared at him in shock. "You know? How could…?"
"Not much gets past me, Dexter," Maxwell said arrogantly. "I think the real question here is, why are you not doing the needful right now? Have you changed your mind?"
"That is none of your business," Reyona said in a vehemently low tone.
He gave her a long look and nodded. "You are right. It is not my business. Weirdly, I find myself interested, though."
God save me from nosy blockheads. Reyona thought to herself in exasperation. "Interested in what?" she asked crossly.
"Interested in you," Maxwell said simply as he stood up and put his hands into his pockets.
Reyona gaped at him in shock as she wondered if he meant what she thought he meant. "What?" she managed to squeeze out.
"Sign the contract, Dexter," Maxwell said in a sudden, curt tone as he turned towards the table.
"This meeting is over. Mitchell will get in touch with you about the following steps," he said with a sort of finality in his tone as he sat behind the desk.
Reyona looked from him to the contract on the table.
She had checked all she needed to check anyway.
She looked back at him, and he was currently bent over some files.
It was just as if she was no longer in the room.
Reyona bent to pick up the documents.
She signed at the appropriate places and kept it back on the table.
Without a word, she left the office.
**********
Just like a released gas that couldn't be contained again, Maxwell's statement opened the door to the thoughts that Reyona had been trying to keep her mind off.
Before she realised what she was doing, Reyona had already found herself on the street outside the courthouse.
Gibson had given her the full details anyway.
"What are you doing?" she said to herself as she parked at a spot where she could see the people entering and coming out of the court.
She knew she should just turn and leave, yet she stayed there in the running car.
She watched as people moved in and out of the courtyard.
Reyona felt heated even though the AC in her car was on full blast.
As much as she tried to keep it away, the memory of her wedding day intruded on her mind.
She still couldn't believe that all the promises and joy of that day were going to die a painful death in the dreary-looking courthouse.
She wished Thomas could feel the same pain she was feeling at that moment.
She wished she could stop the enormous pain that engulfed her whole being as she imagined a life she had known for eight years being brought to an end at that moment by a faceless man.
She wished she could take the last few steps that remained to enter that courthouse and watch everything unfold.
Maybe this time Thomas will be remorseful.
Even as she let out a humourless laughter at that thought, she realised a part of her still wished for that.
He must have loved her at some point, right?
Or had she been so unlovable that a man had lived with her for eight years without feeling anything at all for her?
Reyona had no idea why it was so important for her to know the answers to those questions, yet despite everything, they had been the most paramount questions on her mind.
They still are.