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I couldn’t help but feel drained after the day’s events. “Well, it’s been quite a day. I think I’ll retire for the night,” I stated wearily, making my way towards the bed. “I’m exhausted.”
Mia remained silent, deep in thought as she sat on the couch. I could tell that the day’s events had taken a toll on her as well. As I laid my head on the pillow, my eyes began to grow heavy. I could feel the weight of the day slowly lifting off my shoulders, and soon, I drifted off to a peaceful sleep.
As I lay in a deep slumber, I was suddenly stirred awake by the sensation of a hand moving across my chest. Instinctively, my reflexes kicked in, honed from years of investigation, and I immediately seized the hand. However, as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I realized that the touch was a familiar one, belonging to Mia. Feeling a wave of confusion wash over me, I got out of bed and switched on the lights. And there, in front of me, stood Mia, her eyes red and puffy from crying. It was clear that something was troubling her deeply. I held Mia in my arms, her sobs echoed through the silent room. As I wrapped my arm around Mia and brought her closer to me, I could feel her shaking with sobs. I held her gently, not wanting to add to her distress. “What’s wrong, Mia?” I asked softly, my voice barely above a whisper. She didn’t respond, just buried her face in my shoulder and continued to weep I rubbed her back in slow, soothing circles, hoping to offer some solace. The room was filled with a heavy silence, punctuated only by Mia’s quiet weeping.
After a few moments, Mia stopped weeping and lifted her head from my shoulder. I gazed at her with a questioning expression, wondering what had caused her emotional outburst. “What happened?” I asked her softly while offering her a glass of water. For a while, the room was enveloped in a heavy silence. Then, she uttered, “You…said…you can’t afford being with me…” Her words struck me like a bolt out of the blue. I looked at her in utter astonishment. I couldn’t believe that she was crying so inconsolably over something like this. I knew I couldn’t have said such a thing.
As soon as I heard Mia’s words, my heart dropped to my stomach. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “I can’t believe I said anything like this,” I said, trying to keep my tone calm and steady. But Mia was furious, and she yelled at me, accusing me of using her and treating her like a toy. “You did,” she yelled, her voice rising with every word. “You said that you can’t afford any scandal with me, that you can’t make this relationship public. You’re using me like a playful thing!” I tried to reach out to her, to hold her arm and calm her down, but she pulled away from me, her eyes filled with anger and hurt. “Don’t touch me,” she said, her voice shaking with emotion. I could see the tears welling up in her eyes, and I knew I had to do something to make things right.
Despite having explained to her multiple times that she wasn’t a mere plaything to me, she seemed unable to grasp the gravity of our situation. “Mia,” I raised my voice, “Why can’t you grasp the gravity of our situation? We are here to tail a suspect, not go on a romantic outing.” I tried to calm down myself and said, “Yes, I cannot afford any scandal due to me being a billionaire. Therefore, I need to be cautious. Moreover, let’s not forget that your brother warned us to stay away from each other. We’re working on a case, not on a honeymoon!” I explained. As I looked towards the couch, I noticed torn pieces of our fake engagement photos strewn about. Mia had destroyed them in her fury.
With a mixture of frustration and disappointment, I watched Mia struggle to compose herself after our heated exchange. “Emotions have no place in our line of work,” I reminded her. “I have explained this to you before. You need to be professional and understand most things on your own. I do not have the habit of explaining every detail.” Suddenly, a distinct knock at the door interrupted our conversation. It was a special knock, one that signaled that one of my team members was seeking my attention. I turned to Mia, who was still visibly shaken, and told her to collect herself while I addressed the situation. I opened the door to find Mike, one of my trusted team members, standing outside.
He was clearly excited about something, and I braced myself for the news. “Boss, they are no longer surveilling you,” he exclaimed. “But we managed to record one of their calls. It’s absolutely surprising. You won’t believe who they are calling and what they are saying.” I nodded my head, my heart pounding with anticipation as I took the recording device from him. After he left, I closed the door and pressed play on the recording. As I listened to the voices, my astonishment grew with every passing second, and I could feel my pulse quickening. I turned to Mia and saw that the situation had clearly affected her as well.
14
MIA
The recording leftus in utter disbelief. “I gave you those files and there’s nothing else I can do for you?” A man’s voice came through the device, followed by a girl’s voice. “Just a simple task, honey,” the girl said. “We just want you to investigate if Ethan is in the city or not.”
The man on the other end replied, “Okay, I’ll try.” Ethan and I looked at each other, our faces contorted in shock and confusion. I was utterly dumbfounded upon recognizing the voice on the recording – it was unmistakably that of my brother, Alex. Could it be possible that Alex had stolen files from Ethan’s office? My eyes locked onto Ethan’s, who appeared equally stunned by this revelation. The realization left me struggling to comprehend what I had just heard. How? How could my brother do this? He was not one to break the rules, let alone betray his best friend. The questions kept swirling in my mind, leaving me lost in thought. Ethan’s face turned white as a sheet as he played back the recording.
“Why would Alex do this?” he said, disbelief evident in his voice.
My heart sank as I stared at him, equally shocked. “He’s your best friend, Ethan. My brother wouldn’t do something like this,” I protested, desperate to believe that there was some other explanation. But the recording was undeniable.
Without a word, Ethan pulled out his phone and dialed a number. “Jack, we have a problem,” he said when someone answered. “Alex is looking for me, trying to find out if I’m in the city. You need to be careful.” His tone was urgent, but controlled. “He might try to find out about Mia too. Just play it cool and make sure he doesn’t suspect anything.” He listened intently to the response on the other end of the line, then said, “No, everything’s okay. We’ll be back in the morning.” Ethan hung up the phone and started pacing the room, clearly agitated. I was at a loss for words, my mind racing with questions. Why was my brother doing this? The more I thought about it, the more my head spun.
Ethan caught his breath, he turned to me with a look of concern etched on his face. “Alex knows you’re working with me,” he said, his voice grave. “He may suspect that you’re involved with me if I’m out of the city. With dawn approaching, he may try to contact you or even visit your flat. You must remain composed and not give anything away until we return to the city.” His words struck me with the force of a hammer, and I nodded my understanding. The evening had brought two emotional shocks: the first, when Ethan declared that he couldn’t afford to be with me due to his wealth and status, and now, the second, with the realization that my own brother was working against us. From the moment my heart began to long for Ethan, I tried to deny my feelings for him. Despite his wealth, status, cold demeanor, and dominating presence, I found him undeniably attractive and handsome, and being with him made me forget everything else.
But I knew that our relationship would be complicated, and that he could break things off with me at any moment. When he said that he couldn’t afford a scandal with me due to his billionaire status, my heart ached with pain. I tried to hold back my tears as he went to bed and fell asleep. In a trance, I found myself moving closer to him, my hand caressing his chest. He was a smart and handsome man, the kind of man any woman would desire. I felt my inner frustration bubbling up when Ethan told me that I needed to figure things out on my own. In that moment, my emotional breakdown prevented me from responding, but my anger was building. Does being in a relationship mean that I should always understand things without any explanation? Does it mean that I can’t express my own feelings and emotions? Damn it all! What did Ethan think of himself? Did he believe he was so wealthy that he could dictate the direction of our relationship without any regard for my own feelings?
And after some time, to my utter surprise, I stumbled upon the fact that my own brother was working against us. I couldn’t believe it. Ethan was already quite anxious upon finding out that his files had been stolen from his office. From the outset, he had suspected that someone from his office was collaborating with the perpetrator of the espionage that he had been investigating and now it had come to light that it was my brother. He was Ethan’s closest friend and had easy access to his personal library to steal confidential files. He knew exactly where Ethan kept the case files. But why? What could have possibly driven him to do such a thing? I found it hard to accept this harsh reality.
As I sat on the couch feeling lost and alone, Ethan came and sat beside me, placing his arm around me and drawing me closer to his chest. It seemed as though he could sense my pain. “Ethan, Alex couldn’t have done this,” I murmured.
In response, Ethan gently touched my cheek and lifted my face up, planting a kiss on my neck. “I want to believe he wouldn’t, but he did it. We have evidence. Perhaps he has an explanation,” he said, his voice soothing and reassuring. It was only earlier tonight that I had been thinking Ethan was cold and uncaring, but in this moment, his presence was providing me with a sense of peace and calm. He understood that I needed emotional support and was showing a new side of himself. He was being more caring than I had ever seen him before.
As I reminisced about our childhood, memories of Alex stealing chocolate from my bag came flooding back. “You know, when we were children, Alex once stole chocolate from my bag. Mom scolded him, and he promised that he would never steal anything again,” I said, my hands pressing against Ethan’s shirt buttons. Ethan drew me closer, his large hand gently rubbing circles on my back, and listened attentively.
“But we’re not children anymore,” he reminded me, his voice deep and serious. “I’m afraid Alex has made some very adult mistakes.” I pressed my hand against his shirt buttons, feelIng a mix of anxiety and comfort in his embrace.
“I just can’t understand why he would do this,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
Ethan slowly lifted my shirt up, sending a shiver down my spine, as he responded with a hint of worry in his tone, “I hope this is the only thing he’s done wrong. Otherwise, he may find it difficult to evade the long arm of the law.”
“He hasn’t done anything wrong, I believe,” I said, unbuttoning his shirt without even realizing it. Ethan’s presence and touch were a soothing balm to my emotional turmoil, and I leaned into him, seeking solace in his embrace.
“Alex informed me that the Freelancer who had been under our suspicion for espionage charges was innocent. His extensive knowledge of the case certainly caught my attention, “Ethan said as he lifted my chin with a gracious gesture, “We should not jump to conclusions so quickly.”
As he raised my legs, I found myself almost in his lap, my fingers unbuttoning his shirt while my thoughts were lost in the intensity of the moment. His broad chest enticed me, its enticing rise fueling my desires as I gently caressed him. “Oh, and that lady said that it was quite an arduous task to convince someone. She probably referred to Alex,” I said, his breath trailing hot under my ear, and my body yielded to his every touch. My breath hitched as Ethan’s lips landed on my midriff, “I cannot fathom how they persuaded Alex with just a woman,” I wondered aloud while my hand explored the expanse of his physique.
Ethan embraced me tightly, pulling me closer, “They might have made some foul deal with him, facilitated by the use of a woman,” he suggested, sending me reeling with passion.
The conversation between Ethan and me had taken an intriguing turn. My hands were moving in a frenzied manner, eager to undress Ethan and feast my eyes on his toned and slender body. As if sensing my urge, Ethan swiftly slipped his hand inside my shorts and we both became raw before each other. While admiring his chiseled physique, I couldn’t help but broach the topic of Alex and his rumored deal.
“Which type of deal did they offer Alex?” I asked curiously. “No way. I don’t think he can do this for money. He doesn’t need money,” I added, perplexed. Ethan’s grip tightened around me as he listened intently to my concern.
