Meeting Mr. Mogul: A Billionaire Contemporary Romance (16 page)

“You’re not going to give up easily, are you?” I asked after a few seconds of glaring at each other.

“You know me too well, Ms. Peterson,” he replied with a grin as he gestured his hand towards the car.

I looked at him for a second and to the car, where the lackey kept the back door open. In a defeated sigh, I walked towards the SUV and jumped in. From my peripheral vision, I could see the smug look on his face. He got in the car after me, making me move to the other end of the seat. After a few seconds, his attendant went back to his seat up front and sped off the road.

“So, where are you headed anyway?” William finally asked after the driver hit the accelerator.

Before I could give him my reply, my phone started buzzing in my bag. I got it out and checked the caller I.D. before answering. It was from an unknown number. I debated for a moment but answered the call anyway.

“Hello? Ms. Peterson? This is Nurse Patty. Your father had another attack a few minutes ago. The doctors are trying to stabilize his condition right now,” the woman said.

“What? Is he alright?” I asked frantically.

No. No. No. Please, let him be all right. Please, let him be all right.

“I don’t have word from the doctor yet, Ms. Peterson. I’m so sorry for not calling you sooner.”

“I’ll be there soon,” I said frantically, my voice strained from the sob I was trying to hold back. I ended the call as I took a deep breath.

I turned to William, willing myself to tell him the name of the hospital. But the only thing that left my mouth were sobs as my vision started to blur. I was beyond shaken at this point.

Without a word, William grabbed ahold of me and pulled me in his embrace. His arms gently caressed up and down my back, comforting me as I cried on his black blazer. I couldn’t really concentrate on anything at the moment. I was barely conscious when I heard William tell the man in the front seat to call someone. And, right after that, I was crying like that day—the day when the doctors told me my father only had a few months to live.

Sixteen

Fifteen minutes after we reached the hospital, William was with me at the waiting area. He rubbed my back as I curled myself into a ball while waiting for the doctor’s news. I kept reassuring myself that my father was fine, but I couldn’t convince myself entirely. William’s subtle backrub helped keep me from having a full-on breakdown, which was odd since I hated the man just a few hours ago. At that moment, however, I was holding on to him for dear life.

Almost half an hour later, Terry arrived and ran towards me, making me jump up from my seat and into his arms. He held me tightly as he softly whispered that things were going to be all right. After a few moments of consoling me, he sat me back down on the chair. I was vaguely aware of William getting up from his chair and Terry taking his place beside me. I wasn’t in the mood to explain my father’s situation. So to answer Terry’s unspoken questions, William explained on my behalf.

“I don’t know what the status is at the moment, but the nurse assured us that things would be okay. We just need to wait for the doctor’s full report.”

I saw Terry nod at him. Everyone remained silent until the doctor came. He arrived shortly after. I got up from my seat and met him halfway with Terry and William standing right behind me.

“Dr. Stanley? How is he?” I asked, my voice choked up from crying.

“Ms. Peterson. He is doing well, I assure you. We had to perform an emergency laparoscopy, which is a minimally invasive heart surgery, because one of his arteries got clogged. It wasn’t like last time, though. This time was just a hiccup,” Logan replied with a small smile. “If you want, you may see him now.”

“Can I?” I asked uncertainly.

“Yes. But I instructed the nurses to give him a sedative. He’ll wake up eventually.”

I nodded absently and turned to my father’s room. I took a deep breath before I went inside. Out of habit, I gently knocked on the door before entering. I slowly turned the knob and pushed the door wide open. I saw my father sleeping soundly on his bed, and I noticed new tubes attached to him.

Even months after he was diagnosed, I still wasn’t able to grasp the concept of him leaving me. I was still holding on to that shred of hope that he would get better. I wanted him to get better. He was the only family I had left.

I sat down on the chair beside his bed, the same one I always sat on whenever I visited him. I grabbed the remote control on the bedside table and turned on the television. I flipped through channels to find his favorite sitcom and minimized the volume so I wouldn’t spook him when he wakes up. And intuitively, I turned and kissed his forehead in greeting.

“Hi, Dad. I’m back from work. I’m sorry I left you this morning, but you were the one who insisted. I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner. I should have been here...” I trailed off as I choked on my sobs, gulping down the sadness and guilt.

“I talked to Doctor Stanley. He said you’re going to be all right. So don’t you dare give up on me here, okay? You need to rest so that you can get better. Please get better,” I begged.

I held one of his hands in mine and gave it a light squeeze, willing him to wake up and tell me that he was all right. I didn’t know how long I sat there until a gentle tap on my shoulder got my attention.

“Hey, Mr. Maxwell said that he had to go somewhere. He also said to phone him if you needed any help,” Terry said.

“He’s still here?”

I was appalled that he had seen me break down. I even cried on his expensive blazer. Now he has something else that he could blackmail me with. I wanted to punch myself for showing him my weakness.

“No, he just went home a few minutes ago,” Terry replied as his eyes hardened a little.

I looked at him and furrowed my eyebrows. “What? Did he seem half-hearted when he offered to help?” I asked. My mood lightened up a little at the image of an insincere William in my head.

“You’re the only one who’s insane enough to find something funny about the situation. And no, he wasn’t half-hearted. It was the opposite, actually. And from the way he addressed me, I think he actually hates me,” he replied, looking bewildered.

I softly chuckled at his reaction, though it sounded strained from my lack of interest. Terry looked at me with a small smile, eyeing me with suspicion. “Do you know something about this?”

“No,” I replied too quickly, denoting my guilt.

“Spill it, Peterson,” he warned playfully. His tone finally made me laugh a little and made me feel a bit better.

“Since when did you start calling me by my surname?”

“Just tell me, Andy. Don’t sidetrack me.”

“Okay fine,” I stated, raising both my hands in defeat. “I sort of implied that you are my boyfriend.”

He stared at me blankly, as if he didn’t register what I just said. When I gave him a sheepish grin, he finally snapped and blew up.

“
You did what?
How the hell did a conversation with William Maxwell lead to the subject of you and me dating?” He paused to breathe. “Only you can do something this aggravating.”

“Only to you,” I countered, mumbling softly to myself.

“No wonder that guy hates me. Did you say anything else? Don’t try to get out of this,” he said agitatedly, glaring daggers at me.

“Oh, come on. Don’t overreact. Why would William Maxwell hate you? Just because you are on my side doesn’t mean that you have the same snarky mouth that I have.”

“No. I don’t have your mouth. But you told the man that I’m the only one who can kiss it,” he replied with a glint of amusement in his eyes.

I scrunched my eyebrows, not entirely sure where the topic was going. “And why are we talking about who gets to kiss me?”

“Sometimes, Andy, you can be extremely naive,” he stated with a sniggle.

Now, I’m lost. I don’t think I have an innocent mind. For all I know, Mr. Mogul did have some wicked plans in his head for me. If that's the case, perhaps I should be getting ready to defend myself from his mischievous ways. The man I considered an enemy knew my greatest weakness. If he wanted something from me, he could use it as blackmail. I needed to think of a contingency plan if he uses my father’s ailment against me.

The next day, I was finally put out of my misery when my father woke up. It’s like I’ve taken a huge gulp of air after being under water for a long time. I was genuinely smiling and laughing again. Terry came to visit and brought Andrew along with him. Both of them stayed for the rest of the day, entertaining my father and me. It felt like they were new additions to my family.

By Monday, I was hesitant to leave the hospital and go to work. I even slept over for two nights to watch over my father, just to make sure nothing drastic happens again. Finally, Terry came in and took over in keeping an eye over him. He half-dragged me out of the room so I could get dressed and get off to work. He assured me—thrice—that he would call me if anything happens. I couldn’t have asked for a better friend at that moment.

           When I got to the office, I was already an hour late for work. Again. And it certainly is leaving a dent on my new career. Ugh. I cringed deep down as I entered the elevator and pressed the button to my floor. I prayed that Mr. Mogul wasn’t in or I’ll endure another round of lectures about being late. I didn’t want anyone to kill my recently acquired good mood.

The elevator door opened when it reached my floor, revealing my workplace. In small steps, I stepped out of the elevator looking sheepish. The first thing I saw was Maggie, who was seated by her desk doing her usual thing. She glanced up when she noticed me and greeted me with a small smile. She also looked a little worried.

“How are you today? Is your dad alright?”

“I’m fine. My dad just woke up yesterday. Uhmm… Who told you about...?”

“William asked for you this morning when he came in. I’m glad that everything went well for your dad,” she replied with a genuine smile.

I smiled in return, not processing the rest of her words. I only got the part that William asked for me.
He asked for me?
Was he really taking this ‘starting over as friends’ thing seriously?

My train of thought was interrupted when the phone rang. I turned to Maggie as she answered the call.

“Hello…? Yes, she is here... Okay,” she put the phone back after a few seconds and faced me with an impish grin, “William wants to talk to you.”

I looked at her vacantly for a second until the words sunk in. Her smile widened at my reaction and gestured for me to go in William’s office. When I finally snapped out of my daze, I stood up from my chair and slowly headed inside.

“Just go in,” Maggie encouraged when I hesitated for a second.

I took a deep breath and knocked on the door before turning the knob. I didn’t really know why I knocked considering he was already expecting me. In small steps, I entered his office and kept my head down as I closed the door behind me. I faintly heard his fingers tapping on the keys of his laptop.

“Hey,” he greeted when I turned around to face him. He momentarily stopped typing as he motioned for me to sit down on one of the chairs in front of his desk. I didn’t really notice them there two days ago.

He went back to his laptop and continued to type as I sat down. For a moment, I saw him looking up at me strangely but then he glanced back down at his work just as quickly. This was when I finally noticed what he was wearing. He had on a light gray suit with a blue tie, which was a non-brooding look for him. I’ve never seen him wear light-colored clothes before, which used to make me think that he only had mourning clothes. But this outfit surprisingly looked good on him. He seemed so striking that I was afraid to face him. I guess I needed to warm up to this new look before I could comfortably deal with him. “How is your father?” he asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

“He is fine,” I replied quietly, blushing. I just realized I was checking him out.
What?

He stopped typing, looked at me, and closed the laptop. “Do you need any help with your father’s medication? Why didn’t you take a day off today?”

“No. It’s okay, Mr. Maxwell. But thank you,” I replied with a tight-lipped smile.

“Oh. Alright then. Uhm... Do you want some time off to take care of your father?”

I gave him a small smile and shook my head. “I’m good. I need to work to pay for the bills. Terry got the morning shift covered for me.”

“Terry? The guy who was...”

“Yeah. He’s a friend, actually. Did you say anything rash to him before you left?” I asked, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

“Ah. Uhm...” he stuttered uncomfortably, avoiding my gaze. “I just asked him to give you a message. That’s all.”

“
Right.
” Sensing his discomfort though, I left it at that and attempted to diffuse the situation by standing up and asking him, “Is that all, Mr. Maxwell?”

His eyes met mine, widening for a second before they softened. “Yes. That would be all, Ms. Peterson,” he stated with a small smile.

“Oh. I almost forgot. Thank you for last Saturday. I thought you were kidding about the friendship thing,” I awkwardly said in a rush.

He chuckled and shook his head in reply. There was a teasing glint in his eye when he said, “I wasn’t joking, Andy. I do want to be your friend—if you would want me to be yours as well.”

“It would be my pleasure, Mr. Maxwell,” I replied pleasantly before turning around and walking towards the door.

“Oh. Andy!” he called, making me turn around as I held the door open. “You can call me William, not Mr. Maxwell. We’re friends now, aren’t we?”

“Right,” I nodded robotically. “See you later, William.”

When I finally stepped out of his office, I let out a huge sigh as I leaned on the doorframe for a second. I could feel Maggie gaze at me curiously as I tried to regain my control.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m not really sure. I don’t know what just happened in there,” I mumbled in reply. My voice sounded breathless.

“Did I hear you clearly addressing...?”

“You heard it right,” I whispered in reply as I walked back to my desk.

“I didn’t know that both of you were warming up to each other,” Maggie remarked with a slight giggle.

“I’m not quite sure about that though. Maybe I’m daydreaming right now,” I replied meekly.

Without any warning, a pencil landed on my head with a small thud, making me wince. I turned to Maggie with wide eyes. “Did you just seriously throw this at me?” I asked, picking up the pencil off the floor.

“Well, at least it’s evident that you’re awake if you felt that,” she teased and went back to work like nothing happened.

I shook my head in disapproval and turned back to my desk, which had a pile of reports needed to be finished by the end of the day.