Dalton scrutinized Maya. Her long dark hair was now messy, adding a fierce appeal to her beautiful face. He couldn't take his eyes off her lips because she kept nervously biting her lower lip.
"Am I intruding?" she asked nervously. The brothers didn't respond; they were staring at her in awe. She continued speaking. "You have a hospital in your house? When I woke up, I thought I was in a hospital until I got out of the room and wandered around the mansion looking for you ,Mr. Black. Wow, your mansion is huge! You have everything imaginable here! Your pantry is like an entire supermarket! That is insane!"
"Indeed," Dalton said, amused by her rambling. "Call me Dalton; there's no need for formalities."
"Okay, Dalton," she says his name, blushing shyly.
Dalton's lips curved upward; he found her shyness endearing.
Maya's eyes fell on Oliver. "Are you a doctor, Oliver? Were you the one who administered the IV to me?" Her gaze swept over his white coat and the stethoscope hanging around his neck.
Oliver smiled at her. "Yes."
"No wonder you are such a nice person," Maya praised him.
Oliver laughed, while Aiden, who was sipping his drink, rolled his eyes in irritation. "Lame," he whispered into Oliver's ear.
Oliver ignored Aiden and focused his attention on Maya. "You should be in bed. You need to rest. How are you feeling?" he asked.
Maya grinned. "I'm well-rested," she said cheerfully.
However, her expression quickly changed to a frown as she scrunched up her face. Her eyes widened in surprise. "There are two of you?" she exclaimed, her finger flicked back and forth between the identical twins.
River laughed, he enjoys the confusion that people often experience when they realize there are two of them.
"Hello, dark-haired Goldilocks. You're finally awake." River stood up from his seat and walked over to Maya.
He took her hand and kissed it gently. "I'm River Ford. Nice to meet you." He extended his hand for a handshake.
Maya shook his hand. "I'm Maya DeLuca."
She squinted and studied River's eyes. "Your eyes are green."
"Glad you noticed," River winked at her.
"That's great! I can tell you two apart by your eyes," she said happily.
"Would you like to take a seat?" River asked.
Maya nodded.
"Let me help you," he offered. Suddenly, Dalton strode over.
"Move," Dalton hissed at River.
River moved away from Maya. "Whoa, easy there," he said, raising his hands defensively. "There's no need to act possessive."
"Don't get any ideas. I know you," Dalton warned him.
River is a playboy, and Dalton fears he might try to hit on Maya. It's best if he doesn't get too close to her.
With a grunt of defeat, River returned to his seat.
"I will take you to your seat," Dalton said gently as he took Maya's hand and guided her to the dining table. He pulled out a chair and helped her sit down.
"Thank you," Maya said to him in a low voice.
Aiden suddenly sniggers. "Ever since you met Maya, you've been acting like her Dad," he said, rolling his eyes at Dalton.
"Because you and River are a menace to women, Maya needs to be protected from you, guys," Oliver said, coming to Dalton's defense.
"Maya, do you think I'm dangerous?" River asked, pouting his lips like a child.
Maya's cheeks flushed. "Not at all; you're cute," she replied shyly.
"Daddy Dalton, did you hear her call me cute?" River taunted, with a smirk on his face. Dalton wished he could punch that smirk off.
"Maya, dearest, needs Daddy Dalton to protect her from the big, bad Aiden," Aiden teased, joining in on the fun.
Maya shot him a glare, anger swelling in her eyes. "No, I'm a grown woman. I can protect myself."
"Leave her alone, Aiden," Dalton scolded.
Aiden laughed. "There you go, Daddy Dalton to the rescue!"
"Gosh, you are so annoying," Maya said, rolling his eyes at Aiden.
"And you are always the damsel in distress, needing rescue." Aiden shot back.
Maya and Aiden glared at each other.
"Did you even prepare the lobster ravioli? I bet you bought it from a restaurant and pretended you made it," Aiden said.
Maya gasped, clutching her chest. "That's so insulting! I made it myself. How dare you!" she shrieked at Aiden.
Maya turned to Dalton. "You have CCTV cameras in the kitchen, right?"
"Yes," Dalton replies. The footage is connected to his phone.
"What's the timeline?" he asks.
"I started cooking around 4 PM."
Dalton takes his phone from the dining table and looks for the timestamp.
"Here," he hands the phone over to Aiden.
On the screen, Maya is shown cooking.
Aiden returned the phone to Dalton and said with a snide tone, "So, Chef Maya, did you learn how to cook from YouTube?" He was not done taunting her.
Maya chuckled. "I'm a well-trained chef. I was trained at one of the best culinary schools in Paris," she said with pride. "If you need proof, I have a copy of my certificate on my phone," she added.
"Whatever," Aiden yawned.
"What about you? What qualifications do you have?" Maya sneered at him. "I bet you were expelled from college," she said cynically.
Oliver laughed. "You are so right, Maya. Aiden dropped out of college in his freshman year. He was expelled by the school authorities for engaging in some illegal activities."
"I knew it!" Maya exclaimed. "You still act like a hooligan! I'm not surprised." She shook her head.
"Whoa, bro, she just totally destroyed you," River laughed at Aiden, playfully tugging at his shirt to tease him.
"Give me a high five, queen," River requested.
"Me too," Oliver joins.
Maya high-fived the identical twins.
"Unlike Aiden, you two are the nicest dudes ever! I will bake you chocolate pies for being cuties!"
"Aww," River says, fluttering his eyelashes playfully.
"Yeah! I love chocolate pie!" Oliver exclaims, buzzing with excitement like a little kid.
"You both are snitches!" Aiden says as he puts Oliver in a headlock. His twin brother River quickly comes to the rescue, freeing him from Aiden's grasp.
Aiden and River got into a feigned fight, behaving like two little kids.
Maya couldn't contain her laughter; she laughed so hard while Dalton quietly watched, as he often does like the silent observer he is.
Maya turned to Dalton with a smile and said, "Your brothers are quite entertaining. Do they fight like this all the time?"
"Yes, they act like toddlers all the time,"
Maya laughed. "They are fun."
When Aiden and River pulled apart, they began laughing hysterically at their silly fight.
Dalton observed Maya; he loved how she bantered with Aiden. She wasn't a pushover like he had initially thought she was. He found himself liking her personality. The atmosphere had been gloomy before she arrived, but her sparkling personality had brightened the room, and now his brothers were radiating with happiness.
Anyone who makes his brothers smile will have a special place in his life.
"Maya?" Dalton gently taps her arm. "Would you like to be my personal chef?"
Maya shrugs. "Sure," she agrees without hesitation.
Dalton stood up from his seat and left to retrieve a contract document. He had various types of contracts drafted, including employee contracts, in case he needed to offer one to someone.
Oliver followed him and soon caught up.
"She is a breath of fresh air, isn't she?" Oliver said with a smile.
Dalton nodded. "I like her personality."
"She is great," Oliver complimented.
"We need her around; she will be good for us. Aiden is fond of her, which is why he is teasing her. What do you think, Dalton?"
"I want her around too," Dalton said softly.
"Things will be different from now on because of her presence." Oliver patted Dalton on the back, hope swirling in his eyes.
Dalton feels that way too. Maya is going to bring light into their dark world. He can feel it in his bones.