But what he did next was even more shocking.

Maxwell stared at his phone, lost in thought for a few seconds before asking, "Who’s attending today’s meeting?"

Cole Parker dutifully reported, "The Vice President, the board members, all department heads, and managers..."

Before he could finish, Maxwell cut straight to the point. "I have something urgent to attend to. Tell the Vice President to chair the meeting instead."

Cole subconsciously started to nod, but a few seconds later, the absurdity of the request hit him. He froze. "Wait, what?"

Maxwell, however, couldn't have cared less about his reaction. Before leaving, he patted Cole on the shoulder. "Remember to tell the VP thanks for the extra work."

With that, he walked away.

Before Cole could even respond, Maxwell had turned and headed back toward his office.

Cole stood rooted to the spot, holding his tablet, completely at a loss.

A few moments later, he saw "the boss" stroll out of his office again, holding a set of car keys. His long, narrow eyes were slightly upturned, and the corners of his mouth were curled into an irrepressible, carefree smirk.

He looked absolutely radiant.

Cole: "..."

What on earth was he up to?

***

Arianna sat at her desk, waiting a long time for Maxwell to reply.

The status bar at the top of their chat kept flickering with "Typing...", yet the message bubble remained stuck on the line Arianna had just sent.

She stared at the blinking "Typing..." notification, half-wondering if Maxwell was writing her a novel.

Finally, a few minutes later, just as Arianna was about to dive back into her work, a message popped up.

It wasn't a novel.

It was surprisingly, jarringly brief.

[Hmm, impressive.]

Arianna stared at the lukewarm, seemingly uninvested praise, feeling a momentary disconnect. She kept her eyes on the screen, frozen.

To say she wasn't disappointed would be a lie.

She had been so excited to share the news with him, carefully weighing every word, full of anticipation and a hidden, fragile sort of hope. Now, this cold, dismissive sentence had snuffed out all her enthusiasm.

She realized then...

She shouldn't have held onto any expectations in the first place, should she?

This marriage was nothing more than a mutually beneficial arrangement for both her and Maxwell. Besides, Maxwell had been kind enough to take her in; she ought to be satisfied with that.

With that thought, her mood seemed to settle back into place.

Arianna’s pale fingertips hovered over the screen. She looked down, her eyes lowered, and replied quietly.

[Thank you.]

This time, the reply came back several times faster than before. It was almost instant: [Arianna, I’m busy right now. We’ll talk later.]

Arianna: [Sure, you go ahead.]

After sending the message, she flipped her phone face down on the desk, silently reassuring herself: It’s fine. After all, getting a promotion like this is really just a trivial matter to someone like Maxwell. It’s understandable that he doesn’t care. Don't take it to heart.

***

After work, Arianna walked out with Diana James.

The elevator lobby was packed. It was the usual rush-hour chaos, like a stampede at a marketplace. After waiting for two elevators, they finally managed to squeeze into one.

Inside, Diana nudged a man over six feet tall who was standing in front of them like a wall.

"Hey, buddy, we get it, you’re tall, but could you please look down and see the rest of us? Stop pushing backward. We’re about to be flattened against the wall."

The tall man immediately caught on, quickly pulling his leather shoes back from where he’d been standing on her toes, apologizing profusely. "Sorry, I didn't see you there."

"It's fine," Diana sighed, leaning her back against the wall with a look of utter defeat.

A moment later, she turned to look at Arianna.

It was peak rush hour, and the elevator seemed to stop at every single floor. The cramped space was stuffed with people, yet more kept piling in. They were trapped in the very back row.

Arianna stood beside her, turned sideways, using her arm to shield them from the crowd pressing in behind. Her brow was slightly furrowed, her expression showing her annoyance, yet nothing could hide her fair, vivid features. Her eyes were bright and dark, shimmering with a hint of moisture.

Her hair, long as a waterfall, was pulled back with a simple black hair tie. It was the most basic of hairstyles, but it couldn't dim her radiance in the slightest.

Diana was momentarily stunned.

It wasn't until the elevator doors opened that Arianna grabbed her arm and led her out.

She tilted her head, eyes wide and watery. "Let's go. Why are you spacing out?"

Diana looked at that long, silky black hair and decided to seek advice. "Arianna, what do you usually use to keep your hair so healthy?"

Arianna thought about it for a second. "Does conditioner count?"

"..."

"Then what shampoo do you use?"

"Whatever," Arianna said. "I don't stick to one brand. I just buy whatever catches my eye."

Diana: "..."

Right. That was such an "Arianna" answer.

As they stepped out of the office building, Arianna let go of her arm. "Diana, I have to head toward the Northwest Gate to get home today."

"Huh?" Diana looked at her, confused. "Don't you usually head out the East Gate?"

Arianna fell silent for a moment, debating whether to tell her about her marriage. She weighed it in her mind for a few seconds before giving up. To Diana, she was still happily dating Cameron Hughes. If she suddenly dropped the news that she was married...

"I... I have a friend picking me up. He said to wait at the Northwest Gate."

"Oh, I see," Diana said with a smile. "Alright, you go ahead! I’m heading to the East Gate. See you tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow."

***

Once she reached the Northwest Gate and walked a short distance, Arianna spotted the car right where she had been dropped off that morning.

The driver spotted her from afar, stepped out, and opened the door for her. "Mrs. King, Mr. King is a bit busy today, so he sent me to take you home."

The title hit her out of nowhere.

Just this morning, he had been calling her "Ms. Stone."

Arianna was so startled she almost tripped.

The driver looked alarmed. "Careful, Mrs. King."

Arianna: "..."

Once they arrived, Arianna was about to hop out, but the driver spoke up quickly. "Mrs. King, one moment, let me open the door for you."

While he was busy unbuckling his seatbelt, Arianna hurriedly opened the door herself, stepping out a bit flustered. "It's fine, I've got it. Thank you."

Watching the driver pull away, Arianna let out a sigh of relief, her shoulders finally dropping. She took several deep breaths, trying to banish that title from her ears.

The whole ride, the driver had said "Mrs. King" more times than she could count.

Either he was asking if she wanted any snacks—Mr. King had stocked the car with her favorites—or asking if she wanted something to drink; he’d specifically bought juice, milk, and even popsicles, with the car's mini-fridge packed to the brim.

...

Arianna puffed out her fair cheeks and turned toward the house.

Just as she turned the corner, she saw the scene in front of her and froze solid.

Maxwell was standing by the villa entrance, tall and elegant, a smile in his eyes.

Except, he was wearing an apron.

An apron??

Arianna: ???