Olivia’s POV
I stared at Maxwell, silently pleading with him to let stay. But his expression was neutral, giving nothing away.
I had no choice.
"Yes, sir," I said through gritted teeth.
I walked toward the door on jelly legs, every step taking farther from the room where my entire secret might be about to explode. My hand was shaking as I reached for the doorknob.
What was David going to say? Was he going to tell Maxwell everything? Would Maxwell believe him?
As I stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind , my heart was racing so fast I thought I might actually pass out.
Then sothing crossed my mind - a lifeline in the midst of my panic.
My stranger.
My stranger had dealt with David before. Had beaten him, warning him to stay away from , to ignore anything that concerned . And my stranger was in this house right now. One of those four n was him.
I could use this to my advantage.
Since I was utterly convinced that Maxwell could never be my stranger, that left three possibilities: Gabriel, Alex, or Damien.
And if my stranger was one of them, he would care about my distress. He would notice. He would help.
I made my way to the living room where I’d seen the three n lounging earlier, hoping they’ll still be there. Sure enough, they were still there, playing video gas.
I started pacing back and forth - in the corner - making sure they could all see . My agitation wasn’t hard to fake - I was genuinely panicking.
Back and forth. Back and forth. My hands were clenched into fists, my breathing rapid and shallow.
Co on, I thought desperately. Notice . If you’re my stranger, you’ll notice.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Gabriel stopped playing and looked up at .
"Oliver? What’s wrong?" He asked, keeping his ga pad aside.
I turned to face them, and all three n were now looking at , their video ga forgotten, ga pad on the sofa.
"David," I said, adding venom to the na. "David is a really annoying man."
All three of them sat up straighter, their attention fully focused on now.
"What do you an?" Alex asked, his face filled with confusion.
"What did he do?" Gabriel’s voice was sharper.
Damien said nothing, but his eyes were boring into as usual.
I looked at each of them, trying to read their expressions, searching for any sign that one of them was more concerned than the others. But they all looked equally interested, equally invested in my answer.
I took a seat in the empty armchair, turning specifically toward Gabriel and Alex. Damien I could barely look at without feeling uncomfortable.
"David is your cousin, right?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.
Gabriel and Alex exchanged a glance, then Alex nodded. "Yeah, he’s our cousin. Why?"
"What’s he done?" Gabriel pressed. "Did he say sothing inappropriate? Because if he made you uncomfortable..."
"He’s just..." I struggled to find words that would convey my distress without revealing too much. "He’s in there right now, talking to Mr. Wellington privately. He specifically asked to leave. And there’s sothing about him that just... I don’t trust him."
Damien finally spoke up, "You don’t trust him? Based on what? You’ve only just t him today, haven’t you?"
It was a trap. I could hear the challenge in his question.
"First impressions," I said quickly. "Sotis you just get a bad feeling about soone."
"Or," Damien continued, leaning forward, "sotis there’s history that you’re not telling us about."
My blood ran cold. How much did he know? How much had he figured out?
Gabriel shot Damien an annoyed look. "Stop interrogating Oliver. If he says David’s sketchy, he’s probably right. David’s always been a bit of an asshole, to be honest."
"Hey," Alex protested mildly. "He’s still our cousin."
"A cousin who cheated on his wife multiple tis and is now trying to divorce her," Gabriel said flatly. "Just because we’re related doesn’t an I have to like him."
My ears perked up. "He cheated on his wife?"
"Multiple tis," Gabriel confird. "He’s not exactly what you’d call a faithful husband. Or a good person, really."
That information settled sothing in my chest. David was even worse than I’d thought. And if he’d cheated on his wife, maybe she actually deserved to take him for everything he had.
"So what’s he talking to Maxwell about?" Alex asked, looking at with curiosity.
"I don’t know," I admitted. "That’s what’s bothering . He insisted it be private. What could he possibly need to discuss with Mr. Wellington that I can’t hear?"
Damien was still watching with that unnerving stare. "Maybe it’s personal. Maybe it has nothing to do with you at all."
"Maybe," I said, though I didn’t believe it for a second.
We sat in silence for a mont, as I tried to figure out which of these three n cared enough about my distress to be my stranger.
Gabriel seed protective, but in a general way - like he’d be protective of anyone he considered under his sphere of influence.
Alex seed concerned, but more in a friendly, "I hope everything’s okay" kind of way.
And Damien... Damien just seed suspicious. Like he was waiting for to slip up and reveal sothing.
None of them were giving the clear signal I desperately needed.
"You know what," Gabriel said suddenly, standing up. "I’m going to go check on them. Make sure David isn’t pulling any bullshit.
My heart leaped. "Would you? I an, if it’s not too much trouble..."
"It’s no trouble," Gabriel said, already heading toward the conference room. "David might be our cousin, but that doesn’t an I trust him either."
As Gabriel left, I sat there with Alex and Damien, trying not to hyperventilate.
Please, I thought desperately, watching Gabriel’s retreating back. Please don’t let David have told Maxwell everything. Please let my secret still be safe.
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