Maddison was too stunned to speak. She looked at the empty apartment in complete shock with her mouth agape. Every piece of furniture she'd accumulated over the last seven years was gone.
The lamp she had thrifted that was in the shape of a mushroom. Gone.
Her dream sofa she'd found at the antique shop for cheap. Gone.
Even her framed photo of Anna and herself at graduation was gone!
But nothing surprised her more than when she heard a man's voice coming from her bedroom. Her heart grew cold. Was the robber still in the house? Fear should have gripped her heart. But All Maddison could feel was rage.
She gripped her keys tightly as she watched the door to her room creak open.
"You have a lot of nerve-" Maddison was prepared to go off on the robber before calling the police.
By the time she was done with him, he would be begging for her mercy. But she looked at the man in shock when she realized who it was.
It was Elias King!
"A lot of nerve you say?" He said with a smirk as he folded his arms.
"Why are you here? Where are my things?" Maddison asked in confusion.
What on earth was going on?
Elias didn't seem to be in a rush to explain, nor did he look surprised by Maddison.
"Not even a word of thanks? I expected at least some form of gratitude, Miss Lane."
"Gratitude?" Anger was overtaking her emotions swiftly. Who did this man think he was?!
"If it were up to me, I would have thrown everything out…"
"Thrown everything out?!" Maddison felt as if she was about to lose her mind.
Seeing her reaction now, Elias spoke, "With the money I've given you, you could easily buy anything your heart desires. Why are you so hung up about these crappy pieces of furniture?"
Maddison gritted her teeth. She grabbed Elias by the collar of his shirt and stared him down.
"What did you say?"
This behavior surprised him. He'd never seen anyone so angry at him before! For the first time, Elias King was at a loss.
He had not expected her to react this way. He thought she would be grateful!
"I didn't throw them away. I just had them moved to storage while your new apartment is being renovated," He finally said as he removed her hands from his shirt.
When she heard him say that, Maddison closed her eyes and relaxed a little.
"Don't scare me like that!" She chided him as she turned away.
She needed a few seconds to regain her composure. But as she replayed Elias's words in her mind, she realized a key detail she had missed.
She turned back around to ask, "Did you say new apartment?"
Elias nodded.
"What new apartment?"
He looked around the empty apartment before speaking, "You still want to live in this dump?"
"Dump? You-"
"Sorry, that is my fault. Allow me to rephrase. You still want to live here?"
Maddison bit her lip as she folded her arms, "What's wrong with living here?"
Elias could point out a thousand different things that were wrong. But he knew she wasn't looking for that.
"There's nothing wrong with it. However, the media will be harassing you day and night," he explained as he took a step closer to Maddison.
She backed away but he continued to close the distance between them as he spoke, until she hit a wall behind her, "You won't be able to rest. You won't be able to leave the house. Is that something you would like to experience, Miss Lane?"
Maddison gulped as she looked up at Elias. His piercing gaze was mesmerizing. This was the first time they'd been so close. She found herself unable to look away.
Elias hadn't realized what he was doing until he noticed a lingering floral scent. It was Maddison's perfume. They were so close he could smell it. He recognized it from when he was carrying her from the bar to the car.
He quickly took a step back and readjusted his collar to release the tension building up between them. Maddison tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. Both of them pretended as if the moment before hadn't happened.
Before Elias could say anything else, a knock on the door caught both of their attention.
"Mr. King, sir?"
It was Jack.
"Yes, Jack?" Elias called out after clearing his throat.
"I've received word from security that some of the paparazzi have arrived. We should leave as soon as possible."
Maddison bit her lip. Elias was right. Now that she was entangled with him, the paparazzi would hunt her down.
"But won't they just find out where the new apartment is?" She pointed out.
Elias looked at her. He narrowed his eyes.
"What little faith you have in me," He sighed in disappointment, "Did you really think I hadn't considered that?"
He circled her like he was circling prey as he explained, "Firstly, they already know where you'll be. However, they will never be able to reach you because there's 24/7 security to keep them out. Does that answer your question, Maddison?"
She narrowed her eyes right back at him. She didn't appreciate the way he was speaking to her, but she was grateful for his help. Regardless, she did not want to let him win so easily. That was when an idea popped up in her mind.
A sly smile replaced her look of anguish. She walked up to Elias and wrapped her hands around his arm before he had a chance to move away. She pressed herself close to him, as she looked deep into his eyes lovingly.
Her sudden change in demeanor caught Elias completely off-guard. He stared at her, unable to move from where he stood.
"Thank you for everything, Elias darling," She said in a sweet voice before leaning forward to plant a kiss on his cheek.
Jack was stunned by the scene before him. He'd never seen his boss freeze like that before. Usually, if a woman came onto him like this, Elias would not hesitate to push them away. Even he did not know what to do!
Seeing as her efforts paid off, Maddison released Elias from her hold and walked away to collect her stuff. Casually, she turned back around, smiling triumphantly back at the billionaire who was now her contract boyfriend.
She put on her sunglasses as she declared, "Now won't you be a dear and show me my new apartment?"