Max POV
My heart sinks into my stomach after Ariel finished telling me everything that happened back at her mom’s apartment when I got back home. From her description, I’m scared that her biological dad would turn out to be… Hell no! It can’t be possible, but the name she called is familiar and I can’t deny that fact.
“Don’t worry… Everything will be fine, ok?” I whisper and kiss her forehead, giving her an assuring smile.
“What should I do, Max? I finally found my dad after living all my life without him… Mom doesn’t seem like she has forgiven him, and…”
“Maybe you should talk to him… Ask him why he had to leave your mom behind… And when you settle things with him, you can try to talk to your mom then. If you need my help, I will be here, and I promise you,” I cup her cheeks in my palms and assure her, as I stare into her beautiful eyes, and she slowly nods her head.
I pull her into my arms afterward, hugging her tightly. The last few days have been rough for me and Alex, since we have been busy with one thing or the other, and it’s really freaking us out. We have got many things to handle, but I believe that everything will eventually be fine.
We finally go to bed after talking about random things for an hour. We cuddle on the bed until we fell asleep.
I have no idea it was already morning, until my phone’s loud ringtone pull me out of my deep sleep, and I lazily reach out for it with my eyes still half-closed.
“Hey,” I say sleepily, even though I have no idea who the caller is.
“Max, are you still sleeping?” Alex’s voice sounds from the other end, and I manage to open my eyes. I wanted to sit up on the bed, but Ariel was sleeping in my arms, so I decided to just lay on the bed and answer the call.
“Not really… I mean, I was, but not anymore,” I reply to him, trying to sound natural this time.
“What’s up?” I further ask, because it’s very much unlike him to call me at this time of the day if all is well over there.
“I saw Dad at the hotel where I went to lodge yesterday… He was acting weird. I think he met up with someone there,” He utters, and I glance at Ariel. I don’t want her to hear anything about our discussion.
“Hold on,” I say to Alex on the phone, before I gently pull my hand from her head, getting off the bed afterward.
“Dad? What was he doing?” I pull a puzzled look once I get to the balcony of my room.
“I don’t know. I think he was with someone… A man to be precise,” He replies to me, and I scoff. What the hell was the man doing at the hotel with a man? I would’ve concluded that he is into sex with the same gender, but he never had any record of being gay, which only means that there was more to him being there.
“Did you see the person?” I ask him curiously, and I hear him sigh. That already answered my question.
“No, I didn’t. But I think the man is up to something… I have a bad feeling about this,” He utters, and I nod my head in agreement as if he can see me here.
“Don’t worry about him. Just stay focused, and I will handle him. I will make sure I find out what he is hiding,” I assure him.
“You should be careful, Max. Don’t get into trouble,” He utters, and I nod my head as I hum. The call finally ends, and I take a deep breath.
“Who were you talking to over the phone, babe?” I almost jump out of my skin as I turn sharply to see Ariel standing behind me.
“Huh?” I blink my eyes rapidly in shock.
“Have you been hiding something from me?” She questions me, and I sigh briefly.
“No, I wasn’t…”
“Yes, you are. I heard everything. What exactly is going on?” She further asks, and I sigh briefly. It seems like I won’t be able to hide it from her anymore.
“Look, baby… It’s not something you should worry about, ok? Everything will be fine… I will handle everything, ok?” I walk over to her and hold her hands, giving them a light squeeze.
“Hmm,” She nods her head, even though she doesn’t look convinced that all is well. You can’t blame me for hiding it from her. She’s pregnant, and I don’t want her to disturb herself with any thoughts.
I finally pull her into my arms and hug her gently, her big round stomach serving as a barrier between us.
It was finally 10am, and since I’m not planning to go to the office today, I decide to just step out and clear my head for some time, and maybe use that time to do some investigations.
“Are you going to stay out late?” Ariel pouts her lips as she stares into my eyes.
“No, I’m going to be back before you know it. You should call Henry if you need anything, ok?” I whisper to her before I kiss her forehead, and she nods her head.
“Bye, I love you,” I wink at her before I finally stride out of the living room, heading to the parking lot where I hop inside my car and drive out of the compound afterward.
As I drive down the road minutes later, I notice a black car following me, and I check my side mirror to be sure that it’s really following me, and yes, I was right.
“What’s that?” I ask nobody as I glance at the side mirror again. I suddenly take another turn that leads to the outskirt of the city, a lonely deserted road. I know that it’s dangerous, but I really need to know who the hell is inside the car that is following me.
Strangely, there is no trace of the car again as I drive through the deserted road once I’m there.
“What the hell is happening?” I mumble and sigh briefly. It seems like I was mistaken. Maybe the car wasn’t really following me.
About to turn and go back to the expressway, I march on the brake and bring the car to an abrupt halt when I see the same car standing in front of me suddenly, and that isn’t all, but a man is standing in front of the car. A middle-aged man.
“Who is that?” I mumble as I try to get a glimpse of him, and now that I get a clearer view of him even though I am still in the car, I find him really familiar. He is the man I saw in the picture. Alicia’s dad. I finally met him, but what the fuck is he following me for?
“That’s not necessary for now. You need to go talk to him,” My subconscious mind reminds me, and I push the thoughts away quickly before I push the door open and step out of the car.
“Who are you, and why are you following me?” I ask boldly as I lean against the front of my car.
Now that I’m seeing him, he looks like a real hoodlum even at his age. His thick black hair is curled on his forehead, he has fat cheeks, thick eyebrows, and a pair of brown eyes, and his face looks extremely hard. He is just as same height as me, but huger than I am. Am I even huge?
“Oh, cut the crap, Maxwell Dante. You and I know that you are aware of who I am…”
“Why are you following me, Dennis?” I ask him since I already know much about him.
“I heard you were married to Alicia… My daughter… You shouldn’t address me like that, even as your ex-in-law. Shouldn’t you pay respect to me? Besides, you never did that when you were married to her, and it’s really sad,” He smirks at me, and I scoff.
“Why are you following me?” I ask him instead for the second time, and he sighs briefly as he stands up to his feet.
“You have been sending private investigators to me, which I’m quite aware of… You should stay out of this, Max. You wouldn’t like the outcome of it when I decide to face you,” He threatens me with his face hard.
“Blackmailing your daughter… Is that something nice to do?” I ask him, and his face drops into a sad one as he stares at me…