Olivia’s POV
The entire Wellington family swept past , barely acknowledging my presence as they rushed into Maxwell’s room. I could hear their voices as they went in - Cassandra’s fussing, Dorothy’s concerned questions, Damien’s deeper tones trying to assess the situation. But all I could do was stand there in the hallway, staring at Kira like she was so kind of hallucination.
What the hell was my best friend doing here?
The mont Maxwell’s door closed behind them, I grabbed Kira’s arm and pulled her further down the hallway.
"What are you doing here?" I whispered frantically, checking to make sure no one could overhear us. "Why did you follow Damien here?"
Kira looked around nervously before leaning closer. "It’s my turn to protect Damien today. When the call ca through about Maxwell being in the hospital, he insisted I co along. Said he might need protection even at the hospital."
I stared at her in disbelief. "Protection? At a hospital? From what, aggressive nurses?"
"That’s what I thought too," Kira said, shaking her head. "But you know how these rich people are - paranoid about everything."
Sothing about this whole situation felt off. "I still don’t understand why Damien needs so much security in the first place. Even Maxwell, who was the one actually attacked, doesn’t walk around with bodyguards."
Kira nodded emphatically. "Right? That’s exactly what I was thinking. And get this - he made his head of security this morning. Just like that. Promoted over guys who’ve been working security for years."
I felt a chill run down my spine. "Head of security? Kira, that’s... that doesn’t make sense. You’ve been working for him for what, a few days? And suddenly you’re running his entire security team?"
"I know, I know. It’s weird as hell." Kira glanced around again, then lowered her voice even further. "Liv, I think Damien might be involved in so seriously shady shit that requires protection from very specific kinds of people."
"What do you an?" I asked, already feeling scared for my best friend.
"He’s sneaky, Liv. Like, really sneaky. Sotis when he gets certain phone calls, he sends way across the building or tells to go run errands that take hours. And the people who visit him..." She shuddered. "So of them look like they crawled out of a cri thriller. Expensive suits, dead eyes, the kind of guys who probably have bodies buried in their backyards."
My stomach churned. "Kira, this sounds dangerous. Really dangerous."
"And when these scary visitors show up, he either speaks to them in whispers or sends so far away I can’t hear anything. Yesterday, he told to go get coffee from a shop that was literally a thirty-minute drive away, just so I’d be gone for over an hour."
I grabbed both her arms, feeling panic rising in my chest. "Kira, I’m worried about you. You need to quit this job. Right now. Today. Whatever Damien is mixed up in, you don’t want any part of it."
But Kira just grinned and waved off my concerns. "Relax, Liv. I’ll be careful. Besides, do you know what kind of perks co with this job?"
"I don’t care about perks when your life might be in danger!"
"The fucking family owns a private jet, Liv!" Kira’s eyes lit up with excitent. "A PRIVATE JET! Have you ever been on a private jet?"
I sighed, rembering our flight to Chicago. "Yes, actually. Maxwell and I flew here on his private jet."
Kira’s jaw dropped. "Are you serious? You flew on a private jet and didn’t tell ? What was it like? Was there a bar? Did they serve champagne? Were the seats like leather recliners? Because the one I flew in was luxurious as hell."
"Kira, focus! This isn’t about luxury travel..."
"Oh my God, you’ve been holding out on ! Here I am getting all excited about flying private, and you’re already living the high life with your sexy boss!"
Before I could respond to that, I heard the sound of heels approaching. We both turned to see Diane walking down the hospital corridor, looking effortlessly elegant in coporate clothes.
She spotted us imdiately and headed straight for .
"Oliver," she said, her voice softer than I’d heard it the night before. "I heard what happened to Maxwell. How is he?"
I stared at her, montarily speechless. "How did you... who told you he was in the hospital?"
Diane gave a rueful smile. "Word travels fast in business circles, especially when it involves soone as prominent as Maxwell Wellington. His aunt ntioned it to several people at the conference."
Of course. Just as Maxwell had predicted, Judge Cassandra had broadcast his dical ergency to half of Chicago’s legal and business community. He was going to be absolutely furious.
"He’s stable," I replied. "Pneumonia, but he’s responding well to treatnt."
Diane nodded, then looked at with an expression I couldn’t quite read. "Oliver, I wanted to apologize for last night. The way things ended... that wasn’t how I wanted our evening to go."
I felt my face burning with embarrassnt, because I knew that Kira was listening to every word.
"I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable," Diane continued. "I misread the situation, and I crossed a line I shouldn’t have crossed. It won’t happen again. I hope we can still be friends?"
I didn’t expect the sincerity I heard in her voice. Maybe because I’d thought she would be furious with how I abandoned her last night. "I... yes, of course. Friends is good."
She smiled, looking relieved. "Good. I’m going to go check on Maxwell now, if that’s okay. I brought him so books - I thought he might be bored stuck in a hospital bed."
As Diane walked toward Maxwell’s room, I turned to find Kira staring at with eyes like saucers.
"Holy shit," she whispered. "Is that the girl who kissed you yesterday?"
I nodded miserably.
"Oliviaaaaaa," Kira drawled dramatically, "that woman is absolutely gorgeous. What the hell is wrong with her that she’s interested in you?"
"Thanks for the confidence boost," I muttered.
"I’m serious! I an, you’re cute as Oliver, don’t get wrong, but she’s like... she’s stunning. And she seems genuinely sweet. How does soone like that take an interest in soone like..." She gestured vaguely at my disguised appearance. "Like this?"
"I don’t understand it either," I admitted. "I an, Maxwell is right there - he’s handso, hot, successful, charming when he wants to be. Why would she be interested in his awkward assistant instead of the man himself?"
Kira studied my face for a long mont, then snapped her fingers as if she’d solved a complex puzzle.
"I know what it is," she declared. "You’re in the wrong skin."
"What?"
"Think about it, Liv. God probably wanted to make you a man, right? Like, the angels were up there working on your soul, getting everything ready - giving you all these masculine qualities, that natural confidence with won, that protective instinct, that way you have of making people feel understood."
I stared at her. "Where are you going with this?"
"But then, at the last minute, so rookie angel grabbed the wrong equipnt and gave you a vagina instead of a penis!" She continued, getting more animated. "So now you’re stuck in this female body, but your soul is still broadcasting ’attractive man’ energy, and won like Diane are picking up on it!"
"That’s..." I paused, considering it. "That’s actually the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever said, and you once tried to convince that pigeons were governnt surveillance drones."
"Hey, that pigeon theory is still valid," Kira protested. "But seriously, think about it. You’re more comfortable presenting as a man, won seem naturally drawn to you when you’re in disguise, and even Maxwell - who’s supposedly straight - gets all weird and intense around you."
"Maxwell doesn’t get weird around because he’s attracted to Oliver," I said quickly. "He gets weird because he’s... because he has control issues and I don’t always do what he expects."
"Uh-huh." Kira gave a knowing look. "Keep telling yourself that, sweetie. But I’m telling you, there’s sothing about your energy that transcends whatever body parts you happen to be working with."
Before I could respond to this completely insane analysis of my life, the door to Maxwell’s room opened and the sound of family voices spilled into the hallway. It sounded like they were having so kind of heated discussion, though I couldn’t make out the words.
"Do you want to go back in?" Kira asked.
I shook my head. "Maxwell made it very clear he doesn’t want around right now. I think I’ll wait until the family drama calms down a bit."
"Yeah, you’re right. It looks pretty intense."
"Co on," I said, linking my arm through hers. "Let’s go find so decent coffee and you can tell more about Damien’s suspicious behavior. And maybe we can figure out how to keep you alive while you’re working for him."
"Deal. But I still want to hear all about how you managed to sleep with your boss in the sa room."
I chuckled, as we made our way out of the hospital.
We’d just erged from the entrance, when we saw Sabrina getting out of a cab, looking worried and disheveled as hell.
Shit. Now, Maxwell will be seriously pissed. I just hope I don’t loose my job after this ordeal.
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