FOUR

Maxine had the impression that someone was watching her while she slept. She felt that these eyes were enraged. A pair of gray eyes were looking at her as she slowly opened her eyes, startling her. The appearance of those cold eyes was similar to the color of the sky and clouds just before a downpour.

These eyes have a grimace on them. His eyes were as wolf-like in their acuity. His small lips are firmly closed, and he has an extremely pointed, seemingly perfectly sculpted nose. She didn't realize he was in a wheelchair until it was too late.

Maxine found it hard to accept that the man in the wheelchair was the source of her anxiety. You would mistakenly believe that a regular person is around if you didn't look at him and instead just felt his aura. His aura suggests otherwise even if he may be crippled. Any human would have thought twice before battling it out of fear since it seemed so overwhelming.

In a chilly voice, the guy said, "Are you Laurine?"

It took Maxine two seconds to recover. His voice in particular was so icy that it would make anyone uneasy. Because she was nervous, Maxine sat on the bed, looked the guy in the eyes, and nodded in response to his inquiry.

For concern that her response may be different, she refrained from answering. She came to the conclusion that she is  going to be Laurine De Guzman and not Maxine in the Delgados' eyes.

Once more, the man's voice was icy as he said, "Hmm... that's strange." He regarded her suspiciously, as if there were a problem with her, and this made him anxious.

When Maxine noticed what the man had taken out of his suit jacket, it was a brown envelope that he had thrown in her direction. Maxine was astonished to discover the contents of the envelope when she cautiously took it up.

They showed images of Laurine, her sister. It appears that the man had Laurine, his sister, looked into. It appears that before agreeing to marry Laurine, he first made sure her background was spotless.

There are images of Laurine and her friends shopping in the mall. Another picture shows her and her boyfriend strolling hand in hand as they walk to her parents' house. 

Shit. 

He appears that he already knew and was aware of the fact that I am not Laurine.

How am I going to handle this, oh my? While she didn't express it to her face, she began to panic in her head.

If he had known I wasn't Laurine, he should have told me yesterday. He should have declined the possibility of marrying me before the event began. But why didn't he? Why did he have to  do it now, after the ceremony has been over?  One after another, Maxine questioned herself.

Maxine strained and gripped the envelope more firmly. She bit her bottom lip and sent a glassy black gaze toward Treize.

"Do your parents  believe that because I'm crippled and in a wheelchair, I can't marry anybody I want? And do they think I won't investigate into my future spouse?" Treize said, his voice chilly and severe.

"does your family think i am stupid that I won't find it out? You are all wrong. I ain't stupid!"

"But I'm the De Guzmans' daughter,"

"Yes, you are a daughter of the De Guzmans, but aren't you Second Hand? divorced from your husband? What does your family think of the Delgados, Who wanted second hand wives anyways? Are you making us fools? This is unacceptable!"

The moment Maxine heard those words, she felt so little. The weight of the man's remarks caused her to feel as though she was nothing. She just wished that the ground would open up and eat her alive. Just because she was divorced from her husband. he retreated from what she said as if she were a very filthy lady. But isn't that the actual reason her parents picked her to marry the Delgados' crippled son, since she's a second hand? and they don't want to ruin her sister Laurine?

She bit her bottom lip so forcefully that it almost caused an injury and started to bleed.

When the guy spoke again, this time with even more iciness in his voice, she was deep in contemplation.

"I want you out of this house and don't come up to this family any longer, you liar! Get out of this room and inform my family right away that you are not Laurine De Guzman!"

When the man's words startled and horrified Maxine, she stood up and exclaimed, "No way! I'm not going. And I won't tell your family that I'm not Laurine," since she was terrified of being tossed out of the Delgado estate.

She could not be honest with them. She could not inform them that her parents swapped Laurine and her. If she did, the Delgado family would be offended, which would be detrimental to their family's interests.

As she approached him clutching her wedding dress, Maxine said, "My sister has a boyfriend and she doesn't want to be a Delgado."

Treize asked with a sarcastic grin on his lips, "So you choose to marry me instead of your sister."

Maxine mustered all her confidence and turned to face Treize, saying,

"I know this is simply an arranged marriage. Your family set it up for you, and you don't give a damn if they match you up with anyone. Because if you do, the second you spotted me approaching the altar, you should have already revealed my identity,"

Maxine thought she could convince Treize to keep her in the Delgado family rather than expel her.

Maxine held out her hands in a pledge, "It would be better if I stayed, I swear we won't have anything to do with one other." Her dark glassy eyes are firm and courageous, but her face is reserved since she was worried that the man in front of her wouldn't accept her.

He added, "I can have any woman I want, I don't give a damn about you," while squinting and staring at her.

Maxine was astounded by his remarks. Her lips shook, and her face went pale. Treize swung around in his wheelchair and exited the room before she had the chance to finish her sentence.

Maxine was startled for a few seconds before regaining her senses and preparing to follow Treize when his assistant stopped her and said, "Miss De Guzman, please do me a favor and behave yourself."

Looking at Treize's chilly back, Maxine said, "If you don't let me stay, I will tell everyone that you are an impotent."

Maxine is willing to put everything on the line to avoid being expelled out of the Delgado family.

Her remarks caused him to halt and turn around to look at her again. His expression is chilly and frightening. Maxine, on the other hand, attempted to act courageous in order to avoid being booted out. She summoned all of her inner strength and confronted his frigid glare.

"Who's impotent?" Treize yelled, and anyone who heard him may pee their trousers. His voice is icy and shrill.

He had the dangerous appearance of a wolf prowling in the dark, ready to pounce on his victim, bite it, and let it bleed to death.