Entering the part of the house where Maxim lived, the first thing that caught Diana's attention was the floor-to-ceiling glass wall right in front of her.
She walked towards it, almost entranced by the view. It really was a hilltop mansion. It was not as luxurious and intricately beautiful as the Chen Manor but it was more on the simplistic and stunning side.
Especially the view out of the glass wall. All she could see was a vast stretch of greenery and even though the sun was scorching but she had no trouble looking outside because of the black tint on the glass.
She could not help but marvel at the sight while looking out at birds flying in the sky, the irregular-shaped clouds, the trees, and if her eyes were not failing her, then there was a waterfall in the distance amidst the greenery.
''It's beautiful, isn't it?'' she murmured.
Maxim glanced at her, ''It is,'' he said while looking at her.
The woman standing in front of him was wearing a plain navy blue maxi dress that reached below her knees and was double her size. The dress was so huge that it made her stature look smaller. Her wavy blonde hair was all over her shoulder as she pressed her face to the glass, peeking out like a cat.
Her face was bare of any makeup but those green eyes sparkled like emeralds as the sunrays grazed them through the glass, ''It is beautiful,'' he ended up repeating in a daze.
''Sigh, oh, let's talk before the baby wakes up,'' Deciding that it was not the time to admire nature, Diana was just about to turn around when her elbow was grabbed from behind and the next moment, her back hit the man's rigid chest as he twirled her body with his, holding both her elbows in a tight grasp.
Her eyes widened, ''What—''
''Look ahead.''
Her heart skipped a beat when she heard the sound of his deep voice right beside her ear.
But she had no chance to dwell on their sudden proximity because he immediately released her before he stepped back, putting an adequate distance between them.
A-Ahead? She looked at the wall in front of her. Unlike the other wall which was completely made of glass, this one was half glass and half concrete. The concrete part had a few paintings hanging on it, ''What should I...'' Diana frowned, ''...look at?"
''The paintings,'' Maxim's voice was clear but it sounded like it was coming from a little distance, ''Look at them closely and see what you find. Don't turn around until you are done looking,'' his voice was dominant.
Diana's lips twitched. What happened to that sweetie-pie she knew? Why is he so grumpy?
She blinked. If she did not feel so awkward regarding their current circumstances then she would have turned around and glared at him. Being the person that she was, she would have asked him to look at the painting by himself if he was that interested in them.
But alas, when in Rome, do as Romans do.
When in Warner's house, do as he says.
Not to mention that he probably did not consider her a friend anymore. She did not forget that yesterday when she asked him if they were still friends, he said 'maybe'. Not yes, not no, but maybe.
She wanted to mend their almost broken friendship even though she had no idea why it was broken but at the same time, right now, the baby, money, and the roof above her head were her priorities.
Since Maxim was not her friend at the moment but her house owner, it was best to not offend him lest she got kicked out of the house.
With all the mental calculations done, she looked at the paintings in determination, ''Alright, I will see and tell you what I find.''
Maxim, who was stepping backward with light and steady footsteps paused in his tracks when he heard the obedience in her tone.
His brows tugged together slightly but his expressions turned nonchalant in a few seconds.
While Diana was watching the three paintings carefully, Maxim turned around and tiptoed towards the couch.
Looking at the panties, bra, tie, and boxers stuck at the random corners of the couch, Maxim gritted his teeth. There was a crumpled shirt and a pair of socks on the floor.
Breath in. Breath out.
Kill Ryle Harper. Kill him not.
Trying to calm himself down, he restrained the weird itch in his hands and picked up the bra in between his index finger and thumb.
He had cleaned the chicken wings, and removed the dirtied carpet and stuff before he went to bed because his OCD kicked in just at the sight of these but the rest of the things were left untouched because he could not bring himself to gulp his disgust while doing it.
Little did he see this coming.
His lips thinned in disdain while he continued gathering the other goods using those same two fingers.
''Alright, I am done looking at them.''
Maxim's glanced at the bra, panties and other goods pinched between his thumb and index finger before he looked at Diana who was turning around.
'Swish'
At the speed of light, the goods in his hand dropped to the ground and he kicked them under the couch with his toe before kicking the shirt and socks into the same place.
When Diana turned around, she did not see Maxim standing behind her and her wandering gaze finally stopped at the couch where the man was sitting coolly. Forehead propped on his fist while his elbow rested on the arm of the couch, the man sat there with one of his legs above the other.
When did he go there?
Diana blinked as she approached him, ''I tried to look at the paintings carefully but except for the flowers, I can't see anything else. Is there any special meaning to them?"
''No, so what were you here for?"
"..." Hey, at least give me a heads-up before changing the topic so abruptly.
Diana was about to respond to him but from the corner of her eyes, she noticed a flash of green.
Her eyes snapped in the direction, widening almost instantly, ''Oh my god, Warner, you have a parrot,'' she hopped towards the artificial tree branch which was extended from the wall where the parrot was sleeping.
Maxim followed her gaze, his eyes darkened when he saw the parrot stirring at her sound.
His body moved in a blur and he grabbed a few grapes from the fruit basket and took large strides towards the parrot who opened his eyes and looked around, ''Ah, Master, I am ho—chomp—r—chomp-chomp-chomp—n—chomp—y.''
Maxim wiped the invisible drop of sweat on his forehead as he glanced at the parrot who was now engaged with the grapes.
The sound of soft laughter caught his attention and he turned to look at Diana who was laughing. ''He eats so nicely. How cute,'' she wiped the drop of tear from the corner of her eyes, trying to stop laughing.
''Indeed,'' he replied, averting his gaze the moment she looked at him.
After a moment of silence, he turned to look at her, ''We should talk downstairs.''
''It's fine. We can talk here—''
''The baby—''
''—was sent to her dreamland just a few minutes ago,'' Diana cut him off, ''I tucked her properly, closed the windows, and since she is an infant, not a toddler, she can't crawl or move. And again, since she is an infant, she sleeps quite deeply. Even if you take her to the club right now, she won't jiggle from her sleep. So, we can talk here.''
Diana had no issues with going downstairs to talk but she was starting to have issues with his dominant tone. One moment, he grabbed her hand, and the next moment, he commanded her to look at the wall... And the worse thing, the thing that irked her the most was that he answered 'maybe' to her 'Are we friends?' yesterday.
If they were just 'maybe', not even 'friends', then did he expect her to deal with all his mood swings just because he was the house owner?
Hmph, he can dream.
From the place he was standing, Maxim could see the goods tucked under the couch. The grapes in the parrot's mouth were about to be finished and through the half-glass wall in front of him, he could see the supposedly decent old neighbor peeping at this place through binoculars.
He inhaled a deep breath and without responding to Diana, he walked out of the door.
Diana could swear that she saw red. So, since he wanted to talk downstairs, it had to be there. What's wrong with him?
She gritted her teeth and followed him, almost seeing the fume coming out of her ears.
By the time she reached the staircase, he was already walking towards the couch downstairs.
Right at this moment, the doorbell started ringing.
Who could be here early in the morning?
Diana frowned but her eyes widened as a sudden thought flitted across her mind. Her parents... No.
No. No. No.
They should not know that she was here.
She stepped back from the staircase, her footsteps staggering a bit. She leaned back on the wall as she watched Maxim making his way towards the door.
He opened the door without checking through the peephole and Diana wanted to curse him but her voice was stuck in her throat. Didn't he watch crime TV shows?
Wasn't he worried about a pistol being pressed on his forehead?
''Mom.''
Diana could hear Maxim's voice, his tone was somber and she bit her dress to stop herself from crying aloud. She knew it. She knew it. Her mom was here—
Wait. Why would he address her mom as 'mom'?
That means... the person at the door was not her mom, but his?
It means her parents were still clueless about her whereabouts.
Diana sighed in relief. But suddenly, she gasped.
It was Maxim's mother!
''Oh, my babyyyy~ You didn't tell me. Which one did you choose, honeeey~ Jenny or Whitney?''
As Diana looked in that direction, she noticed that the door was half-ajar and she could not see the lady properly but she could hear her voice.
Jenny? Whitney?
Girls... for Maxim? Was he getting married?
Her brows tugged together slightly but before she could dwell on her thoughts, she noticed Maxim's palm making some sliding movements behind his back.
He was telling her to hide.
And she snapped out of her stupor. Right, she should hide.
Without giving it another thought, she dashed inside his house and slowly closed the door.
Where to hide? Where to hide?
The huge couch caught her attention and she almost somersaulted to land behind it.
...
A very very long chapter for you all. I hope you liked it ;) And if you do like it and want some more long chapters in the future, then share your thoughts about this story in the comments and review section. Haha, yes, I am trying to bribe you. Hopefully, it works and brings some of you ghost readers out to write a review for Maxim and Diana ( *︾▽︾) Hugs and kisses~