“Sorry.” I shrugged. “Only joking. And you don’t really have to help—”
“No, I want to help with your paper,” he cut me off. “But I do have one condition.”
I turned around to look at him so that we were no longer spooning and surveyed his face feeling slightly nervous. What could he possibly want now?
“What is it?” I asked carefully.
“I would like to meet your mother.”
Immediately, I burst out laughing. “You are really funny, Zayden. But seriously, what can I do for you?”
“Why is that funny?” He raised both his eyebrows. “I am serious. I would to meet your mom.”
“That is the worst idea you have ever had,” I said with a smile. “Right after the first worst idea of making me this contract.” As his face began to look dismal, I hastily added, “I am joking around. Seriously though, it’s not a very good idea. Maybe we should wait a little bit longer before—”
“Don’t you think I have the right to get to know the person for whose medical bills I am investing so much money?” He looked annoyed now. He was right, after all. He did deserve to know whom he was making these payments for. If I argued with him, I wouldn’t get the help I needed with my paper and we’d just spend time arguing back and forth. Plus I could always tell my mom that Zayden was simply someone I worked with, rather than letting her find out that I was sleeping with my boss.
“Just tell me when and where and I’ll arrange for it,” I said, giving up. “Now, we have a paper to write.”
---
When I woke up the next morning, the world was suddenly a different place. I felt as though I had awoken from a fantasy so deeply etched into my subconscious that I didn’t even know it existed. Groggily I turned around on the bed and reached for Zayden, but he wasn’t there. From the sound of the shower running I could tell he was in the bathroom.
I looked around the room and took a deep breath. As of last night, I was in a real relationship with my boss. The thought sent a shiver of excitement and happiness through my entire body. I was going out with Zayden Sinclair. I was going out with handsome, incredible Zayden Sinclair that every girl between the ages of eighteen and seventy would give up an arm and a leg to spend just an evening with. How had this happened? How had I not only managed to attract the attention of such an incredible man, but also make him fall for me? He had said he was smitten, hadn’t he? I only realized how hard I had been grinning when my cheeks started hurting. It was too good to be true.
I could dwell on that later. For now, I fancied a nice warm shower and fresh comfortable clothes. I slowly got up and gathered whatever items of my clothing I could find discarded all over the floor and started walking towards the shower that was in the hallway since I didn’t feel like interrupting Zayden.
As soon as I got out of his room, however, I almost had a heart-attack. An older looking woman was walking alongside the other end. I had thought there was nobody but me and Zayden in the house. With great embarrassment, I tried to cover myself up with whatever bits of my dress I could grab, but it was probably neither timely nor very effective. The woman had already caught a glimpse of my face and was smiling in what seemed to be a very sinister manner.
“So,” she said in a scornful tone. “You’re his latest conquest?”
“Excuse me?” I looked at her in confusion.
“Zayden’s newest arm-candy.”
“Um, no. Who are you?”
“Never mind that. I have to say I am not very surprised he picked such a young girl. That’s just his style. You are of legal age, right?”
Was this woman suggesting I was a minor and Zayden was committing a crime? What the hell was her problem?
“I turn twenty-one next month, not that it’s any of your business.”
“Oh wow, you’re feisty too. That’s right up his alley. Congratulations! Zayden is quite a beneficial catch for you.”
“I don’t know who you are or what you are talking about, but I don’t have time to address your needless concerns about things that to my knowledge do not pertain to you in any way shape or form.”
I turned my heels around and walked into the bathroom, feeling pissed. Who the hell was that woman and why was she being so judgmental? Suggesting I was a minor and some kind of an object of Zayden’s fantasy – well that part was, in a way, true enough, but what did she mean “beneficial”? Was she suggesting I was using Zayden for his money?
The thought gave me an uncomfortable feeling in my chest. In some ways that was exactly what I was doing, wasn’t I? I was using the resources he had to my own advantage. But I was going to pay him back eventually for all the medical bills. That was for certain. No matter what happened between the two of us in terms of our romantic relationship, I was never going to forget what he had done for me and would always be grateful. Even if I wasn’t, even if I ended up hating him somehow, I would pay each and every penny he spent back. It might take me a few years, but I was determined to make it happen.
I turned on the shower and stepped into it. Feeling a little better, I let the warm water run over my body, letting all my worries momentarily evaporate. But a part of me was still wondering who the heck I had just talked to…
Chapter 3
Zayden
Ned was driving the Limo on the day I was to finally meet Aria’s mother. Despite her many protests, I had decided that there was nothing wrong in displaying how affluent I was. If anything, it would perhaps help her feel a little less badly about my investment. It always worried me that Aria thought that the money was worth more to me than it really was and I did not want her mother to start feeling so indebted too.