Maxwell's P.O.V
I stared at my mom for a few minutes without uttering a word."Max, you don't have a choice right now. I wished I had a way to make this easier," she said. I looked at my mom and smiled, then glanced at the photo of the lady given to me by her. She looked hot and harmless at the same time.
"Everything you need to know about her is well-detailed there," She said and handed an envelope to me. "Her name is Amihan Jude, the only daughter of Mr. Angelo Jude, Although he has a son who is an autism patient. Making her the only heir of her father's wealth," she added while I gave a disapproved look."Max, my darling, This is the only way to save our company. We are almost bankrupt and need the support of a multinational company. This is your dad's only legacy he left for us. We can't let it go down without trying to save it."
"What if she is married or Even in a relationship?" A grin appeared on my face, but a questioning one.
"No, she isn't married. She is single. Go through that file for all the details you need about her; she is pretty decent, and I haven't seen you bring home any female in a long while.," she said defensively. "You have all it takes to make a lady of her caliber fall deeply in love with you, Max,"Taking a long breath, I let the document fall to the table in front of me.
"So how do I get through to her? Where does she stay?" I asked inquisitively.
"The Philippines. " "The Philippines?" I repeated and gave my mom a surprised look and chuckled. "How on earth would I make someone that far fall deeply in love with me? We are in New York, Mom. I thought you said they owned the Retribution company here in New York, and that was why you needed them?""She moved to the Philippines a few months ago. She is the one heading the company's branch over there."
"Mom, it's impossible to date a lady of her caliber through social media messages. Except she comes over or the other way round," I said, holding my mom's hands. I could tell she already had a plan with the way she smiled. "Don't tell me you want me to go to the Philippines?" I raised a brow, and she nodded."You just have to do it for us, Maxwell,"
"Oh No, Mom, can't we look for an alternative to get back on our feet?" I asked. "If there was, do you think I would want my only son to leave my sight and go to another country?" she gave a pitiful countenance that broke my heart. "Your visa is inside that envelope, Max. Your flight has been scheduled for tonight," I was dumbfounded as I stared at her."We've been given three months to revive the company or lose it permanently to the bank. Sorry I didn't inform you beforehand; there's no time, max."
The last thing I wanted was to make my mom unhappy.
Dad had a heart attack six months back that led to his death after a business he invested billions of dollars in was defrauded. He had used the company as a bank collateral to collect loans for the business, and the thought of losing the company he had struggled to build from scratch led to his untimely death. Since then, my mom has struggled to pay them the monthly allocated amount, leading the company to bankruptcy.
"What if we don't fall in love?" I looked her in the face; I was sure she wasn't expecting my question. "You are irresistible Max, and I have faith in you," with Assurance she patted my back.
"Uncle Sam will be going with you. He has made all the necessary arrangements for your arrival. Don't worry, he isn't staying with you. I want you to be free while at its max.," I nodded.
I picked up the document and headed for my room, threw myself on the bed, and sighed.
My mom was right; the last I brought a lady home was over six months ago. Dad's death made me realize how much I wanted to make my mom happy. She never approved of my ex-girlfriend Sonia, who was too clingy and melancholy. Mom wasn't the type who interfered in my love affairs, but for some reason, she never liked Sonia and was happy when I informed her about our separation. I picked up the lady's photo and looked at it for a while. She was beautiful and looked calm, but photos can be deceptive. I had made up my mind to go into a committed relationship after my break-up with Sonia."I'll do this for my family," I sighed and dropped the photo on my table, picked the envelope to check the time for my flight,I had less than five hours to go.I stood up from the bed and packed some essential belongings inside my box, awaiting my flight.
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Annabel's P.O.V. We had another round of sex. Karl's skills improved with each round. Although I made sure he pulled out before splashing his sperm."I'll get us two glasses of strong liquor," I offered and walked to the bar.
He had booked a private apartment for us in the heart of Manila.
As I returned to the room, I saw him going through the document.
"With the simple way you look, one would never tell you are wealthy." He said, and I laughed. I handed him the liquor glass and gulped down all the liquor in my glass. I dozed off immediately and woke up with an intense migraine the following day. There was no trace of Karl. He had left a note on the table informing me he had to leave early for work and didn't want to disturb my beauty sleep.I smiled and walked into the bathroom to freshen up before taking my leave.
Annabel's P.O.V I took my phone and googled about Karl Rodrigo on my way home; not much was said about him except that he was a businessman happily married to Dalisay Gabriel with different loved-up photos of them that made me chuckle. "Believe the internet at your own risk," I hissed. I dialed Judith's number. "Hey, sis," I said when she picked up. "What's up, Bella? Your call came in right on time, baby girl. I was worried if Karl had added you to the list of his wives." Judith said, and I raised a brow. "List of his wives?" I questioned. "Yes, girl, you had me right. The motherfucker is a gold digger, just like his public display wife," She added, and I became more confused. I've known Judith for over five years; she has been the private investigator my parents had hired to help me with my findings. Although, she is more of a family to me now. We relocated together from New York to the Philippines. Getting along with her wasn't easy at first because of the trauma I had go
Amihan POV. It's been Ten years since I last stepped foot on ANWIL company premises and somehow it made me feel nostalgic. As I got out of my car, I felt tears welling up in my eyes. I wiped them quickly so no one would see. Ten years ago, I was a different girl. Life has cracked, honed, and hardened me. I no longer felt afraid of being in the dark or being darkness itself.I missed the former me most of the time, but she passed away ten years ago. I waved and grinned at Karl as soon as I noticed him heading in my direction. "Hello Amihan, you look stunning as always," Karl complimented and I smiled. "You don't look bad yourself," I replied. "We have to keep it official here," He whispered and I nodded. "So where's your wife?" I asked. I couldn't wait to see Dalisay after a decade. "She asked I come to welcome you. We didn't know you would be arriving this early. She is in the conference hall with some important clients but I've informed her of your arrival, " Karl said a
Maxwell's Pov. The moment I checked into the hotel my mom had booked for me in the Philippines. I searched through Amihan's Social media pages and couldn't find any intriguing biographical information about her life. From the sparse photos on her walls, I could tell she was a workaholic who had no social life.I sighed at the thought of winning such a lady's heart, but I was stuck with the arrangement unless I wanted my mother dead. She had made it clear that I was her last hope and if by any chance we went bankrupt, she might not survive the heartbreak. My thought all through the night was on how to get into this mysterious lady's life and make her fall madly in love with me within this short duration. I had to put my life on wait to complete this task, and I would never want to ruin it.I let out a frustrated sigh as my phone rang. It was my mom, the last thing I wanted was her emotional talks but avoiding her calls wouldn't help either. "Hello Mom," I greeted her with a for
Dalisay's Pov. I had anticipated collaborating with Retribution Multinational since it opened its branch in the Philippines. It was the largest international company and how it had managed to take over the shine of other businesses within months of its establishment in the Philippines was still a mystery. It was unbelievable to me that the daughter of the CEO was sitting in front of me, presenting a proposition for my company. I've always wanted a major victory that would announce my name as the CEO.A collaboration with Retribution Multinational would be that finishing touch my company needed. As we shook hands, I had an odd feeling. It was a familiar feeling but I couldn't place the face and she also had the same voice as that of my late best friend. The least of my concerns was attempting to determine who possessed a comparable touch impact.Annabel William is dead and gone. I witnessed her being buried. There's no way she would be alive, perhaps I'm hallucinating since it's
Maxwell's P.O.VThe following day, I arrived at the company where Judith and I would be working. I had been restless all through the night as My mind was muddled by how to fulfill my mother's wish to save my family from debt and bankruptcy. I was eager to visit Judith and get to work with her. She was the bait and No matter how tough she could seemed, I was determined to make sure I got along with her. While I waited for the CEO to arrive, I glanced around the reception hall. The ambiance of the company was so good and enticing. It was one of the biggest Fashion designing companies in the state. I still wondered how my mother expected me to handle a job at a fashion house without any prior expertise. Since I have never worked for one, I was curious as to what she would have said to the CEO to convince him that a novice employee would be a good fit for his company. My thoughts were disrupted by my phone's vibration. It was a call from my mom. "Hello, Darling," She greeted with
Judith's Pov. I reluctantly got off my bed as Annabel knocked at the door. I knew she was worried about how last night had gone with Jake and I. Even when I made a concerted effort to maintain a straight face to hide how pained I was over my breakup with jake, Annabel always had a way of reading my emotions no matter how hard I attempted. "Hey, sleepy head! She called out to me as I approached the door, "Open the door!" I gave a grumpy yawn and replied, "You don't have to wake me up this early, Bella." "Early? I guessed you had a lot to drink last night and had slept so deep. It's almost Eight A.M," My eyes widened in shock. How would I meet up work? The general staff meeting was scheduled for that morning by the CEO. That month, I had skipped three meetings in a row. The last time was because I was unwell, but the first two instances were because my boss had allowed me to take care of an important client. Although my boss was the carefree type who didn't mind if you miss
Amihan's pov. Judith approached the car with a gloomy expression on her face. She must have had a hectic day because she had broken up with Jake. I jokingly said, "You look so exhausted like the company's burden was placed on your shoulder," and she gave me a feeble smile in return. "Seriously, I'm worn out. She exclaimed angrily, "I'm exhausted!""What happened? Did your boss query you?""No. I couldn't concentrate at work today, Jake's unending calls and text messages made me sick...."As she talked, I felt sorry for her since I had never seen Judith behave so moodily about anything."As if that wasn't enough, the new employee was deliberately irritating me," she said, and I arched an eyebrow."Your boss hired a new employee? I thought he had done that a month ago and according to what he said the last time I visited, there was no vacancy for a new intake," Judith rolled her eyes as she shook her head. "so we all believed not until this morning, he introduced an annoying g
Maxwell's pov I had a restless first day at work because I couldn't take my eyes off Judith. The connection I felt towards her was something electrifying and I hoped I wasn't falling for her. Maybe I felt such attraction towards her because of the mission I was to accomplish through her. As soon as I got to my hotel room, I remembered a blockbuster movie that starred most of my favorite actors would be released that evening, and since there was nothing else to keep my mind occupied, I decided to go see the movie. The receptionist informed me that there was a cinema a few blocks away from the hotel. After having my dinner, I hurriedly entered my car since I was a few minutes late for the supposed time the movie would be shown. I had booked a ticket reservation online to avoid it being sold out before my arrival. The moment I pulled my car into the cinema parking lot, I picked up my phone to check for my online ticket. I was engrossed with my phone and didn't notice the car revers