Chapter 113

Chapter 113: Chapter 113

Olivia’s POV

The entire Wellington family swept past me, 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 some kind of hallucination.

What the hell was my best friend doing here?

The moment 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 came through about Maxwell being in the hospital, he insisted I come 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."

Something 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 me his head of security this morning. Just like that. Promoted me 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 some seriously shady shit that requires protection from very specific kinds of people."

"What do you mean?" I asked, already feeling scared for my best friend.

"He’s sneaky, Liv. Like, really sneaky. Sometimes when he gets certain phone calls, he sends me way across the building or tells me to go run errands that take hours. And the people who visit him..." She shuddered. "Some of them look like they crawled out of a crime 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 me so far away I can’t hear anything. Yesterday, he told me 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 come 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 excitement. "A PRIVATE JET! Have you ever been on a private jet?"

I sighed, remembering 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 me? 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 me! 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 immediately and headed straight for me.

"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, momentarily speechless. "How did you... who told you he was in the hospital?"

Diane gave me a rueful smile. "Word travels fast in business circles, especially when it involves someone as prominent as Maxwell Wellington. His aunt mentioned it to several people at the conference."

Of course. Just as Maxwell had predicted, Judge Cassandra had broadcast his medical emergency 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 treatment."

Diane nodded, then looked at me 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 embarrassment, 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 some 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 me 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 mean, you’re cute as Oliver, don’t get me wrong, but she’s like... she’s stunning. And she seems genuinely sweet. How does someone like that take an interest in someone like..." She gestured vaguely at my disguised appearance. "Like this?"

"I don’t understand it either," I admitted. "I mean, Maxwell is right there - he’s handsome, 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 moment, 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 women, 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, some rookie angel grabbed the wrong equipment 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 women 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 me that pigeons were government surveillance drones."

"Hey, that pigeon theory is still valid," Kira protested. "But seriously, think about it. You’re more comfortable presenting as a man, women 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 me 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 me a knowing look. "Keep telling yourself that, sweetie. But I’m telling you, there’s something 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 some 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 me around right now. I think I’ll wait until the family drama calms down a bit."

"Yeah, you’re right. It looks pretty intense."

"Come on," I said, linking my arm through hers. "Let’s go find some decent coffee and you can tell me 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 same room."

I chuckled, as we made our way out of the hospital.

We’d just emerged 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.