Xavier's pov:

Finishing my work by the evening, I reached the mansion by 6. I straight up went to my room, took a bath and got ready for the dinner. I knew that Mimi must have got everything ready for the dinner .

Lucas messaged me that they would be here till 7. I went downstairs and looked for Mimi. When I asked Parker, one of the house helps about Anna , he told me that she went to her room. I assume that she might be getting ready for today's dinner . I wanted to have a talk with her regarding her changed behaviour .

I went to her room and knocked the door .

"Come in." She said.

I went inside . She looked at me for a second and then resumed making her hair.

I went to her and asked , "What's the matter Mimi? You have been acting a bit weird since yesterday night . I have noticed that. Have I done something wrong ?"

"No." She replied .

"Please Mimi, I am already in a not very good condition right now. With Dan being upset, it's already tough? Don't make it miserable for me by not talking. Please.

You know what you mean to me. I cannot withstand your anger. Please talk to me and tell me what's my mistake ." I pleaded her.

"You know Xavier, you are are not like my child, you ARE my child. I have raised you .I always wanted to give the best of upbringing to both of you and you know when a child does something wrong , his parents are at as much as fault as he is." She said.

" What do you want to say Mimi?"

" You know, Maya, she is really an amazing girl. She is not like those plastic dolls you brought home many a times. She is different . Never even for a second , she treated me like a others did. She is the most polite person I have seen . I don't know what made you think of her as a slut but, let me tell you I have seen world more than you.

You may be the biggest business tycoon right now but, I am much elder to you and I have experienced how the world runs. I dont judge people. But, after spending time with Maya, even if it's only for two days , I have known her enough that I can tell she is not a SLUT . "

Mimi's words were a thorn to my ears. How could Maya do this? How could she corrupt my relation with Mimi. I won't ever forgive her for this.

You'll pay for this stunt Maya.

"And before you erupt with anger, let me tell you she didn't complain about you to me . Yesterday, after I went to her room , I talked to her. I apologized to her for my mistake and hugged her when she told me that I was not at fault there . Any other person at her place would have held me responsible for their condition. But, she instead told me that I was not at fault there and she was the one who was mistaken.

Listening her soft words , I hugged her. Not out of courtesy , but I felt the need . As soon as I hugged her , she bursted down in my embrace. She cried for nearly 20 minutes and then after, I kind of forced her to tell me what was bothering her, then she started with all the things. I know it's not my place to tell you about her. But, seeing your behaviour with her , I think you should have a reality check ."

"What are you talking about Mimi?" I asked.

"You might think that this marriage happened by her choice . Even if her father put forth the proposal for this marriage, you might think that he went home and talked to her about all these things and then she said yes. But ,no dear, her father didn't even ask her once. She hasn't even seen those prenuptial papers. Her father made her sign the papers . She had no idea why was she getting married , with whom she was getting married. Everything was literally forced upon her . Still , thinking it as her destiny she went ahead with the procedure and came here with you . Any other person ,who would be on her place , would have made your life a hell in only a day.

But still today , when she got to know that I was behaving distant with you because of what she told me yesterday about you, she literally begged me to talk to you , understand you and not be upset with you. She told me that you have been going through the same hell as she is. Can you imagine a person whom you called as slut, questioned her character and who you think as a gold digger is defending you in front of me knowing that you won't know any of this ? She clearly told me to not tell you anything regarding our conversation.

But , I felt that you should know this. Now , tell me what is her mistake in all this ? She was not at fault when her father went bankrupt . She was not at fault when her father sold her to you. She was not at fault when she was forced into signing some papers . She was not at fault when she was forced to marry you. She was not at fault when she had to leave everything behind including her name just to stand on the words of her parents . She was also not at fault when instead of talking to her properly , you termed her as a slut. She was definitely not at fault when you assumed her deteriorating health to be her pregnancy." Mimi told me with her voice cracking at the last and disgust clearly voicing out.

Till now, I thought this marriage happened with her choice. I never knew all this was forced upon her. I assumed her silence in these two days to be her attitude .Never even a thought came to my mind that she could be in a bad condition. I didn't know what to say futher.

Mimi took my hand in hers and made me sit on the bed.

" Listen child. I don't know if you would like what I'm saying or not but I feel I should say this to you. I have only known her for 2 days. But , I can tell she is not what you think about her. She is different. And even if it's a deal try to make this work. This marriage might be a deal for both of you.

But , in reality , a marriage is something which is termed as a bond for lifetime . Don't make this sacred thing a deal just for money . You did this mistake once . Now, you have the chance to correct it. Think about how to work this marriage out , rather than breaking it . Talk to her like you talk to a normal friend rather than judging her . And please if even if you don't respect her, at least respect my upbringing that I gave you . I never taught you to verbally abuse a girl. I might not be your real mother but I very well have the right given by your parents to show you your mistakes and I did that right now.

But, if you still feel that you have done right, then that would be your fault. I showed you your mistake. Now it's your turn to correct it. Think about it and apologize to her for whatever you have said. And please don't repeat this . If not for her , at least for my sake don't repeat this again."

Mimi's words lingering in my mind made me feel so guilty of myself. I felt terrible of myself.

"I am almost ready . Let's go downstairs. The little devil might be coming soon . If she gets to know that even today you are late , she might get upset more . " She smiled a little, patting my cheek.

" You go ahead. I'll join you within 2 minutes.

" Sure child. " She said and with that she went .

I sat on her bed thinking about whatever she just said . Even yesterday , Liam told me to talk to her. Today, Mimi told me to talk to her . I know, these two are very sensible people. They might not be wrong and even if they are, there is no harm in trying to be subtle with each other. I will just go and talk to Maya right now.

I checked my watch and it was still 15 minutes for Dan and Lucas to come. I went to her room. I knocked it but no answer came from the other side . I went inside only to find that she was not in her room. I even checked the washroom and the balcony. I went downstairs to the living room but she was not there too. I got a bit worried now. Where did she go?

I found Mimi in the dining room setting all the dishes. I went to her and asked ," Where is Maya, Mimi?"

She smiled and told me, "She is in the kitchen." I wondered what was she doing there . I went towards the kitchen .

Maya's pov:

When Anna told me about Mrs. Cameron, I got to know that she runs a successful brand that deals with women's clothing, footwears, jewellery and all other accessories. Her brand is called the Dan's . I'm not much into branded things but , I've heard a lot about her brand.

Anna told me that she likes chocolate cake very much. Not that I am talking big about myself but, I make good cakes . I asked Anna if I could bake a cake for her.

Anna's reply in the sweetest way possible brought back my smile.

"Child , this is your house. You don't have to ask for my permission to do anything . You can do whatever you want."

I felt good after hearing that because I was tired from all these days by taking permission for every little thing . Here, Anna made me feel better.

I got ready. I am not much of a messy person. I can cook well without even spoiling my dress. So, rather than wasting time , I got ready fast and went to the kitchen to bake the cake.

Till then, Anna had already made the dinner and was setting the dinner on the dining table. My batter for the cake was almost ready when I heard some footsteps in the kitchen. I thought it was Anna and I looked at her smiling.

"Do you think they will like my cake? I am getting nervous now." I told Anna.

But, hearing no response from her made my head turn up towards the door.

But, my smile faded as soon as I saw the person. He was Mr. Adams .

He was wearing a black turtleneck t- shirt with the jacket over it paired with blue jeans. I don't lie when I say his aura screams dominance, arrogance and one more thing, that is perfection. He looked like a Greek god. I didn't realise that I was gawking at him and he caught me doing that. He was smirking .

"I don't mind if you take a picture." He said.

I was confused.

" Huh?" I asked.

" You are looking at me for so long. Or I would say that you were gawking at me . So, I thought you would like a picture ." And he chuckled.

It was a really beautiful sound. But, I realised that I should control myself.

This is the same person who insulted me continuously from the moment I entered his house. He looked at me as if he wanted to say something. But, I don't know why, I started shaking a bit. My anxiety started to kick in . I felt I was going to drop the the bowl of batter and it almost lost it from my hands .

But, Mr. Adams quickly catched it . I guess, just for some milliseconds our fingers touched. I don't know why but suddenly a chill ran through my veins. I quickly removed my hands from his and he kept the bowl on the kitchen counter. I muttered a quick thanks. Then, I moved back to my work.

I settled the cake in the microwave . It will take almost 15 minutes for it to get ready. Mr. Adams proximity was affecting me.

So , I thought to get away from the kitchen and come back when the cake would be ready. Mr. Adams noticed that.

I was going from there when he said," If you want you can wait in the kitchen . I will go." And with that he went from there.

I don't know why but, I felt bad that because of me he had to go from his kitchen. I guess he wanted something . But, ignoring it I was looking at the microwave , waiting for the cake to get baked. After 15 minutes , the bell in the microwave rang .

That's it! My cake was ready. I carefully took it out, did some mild icing and decorated it with chocolate ganache. Anna told me that Mrs Cameron likes her cake decorated with chocolates. My cake was all ready . I took the cake and kept it in the fridge for cooling.

That's when Anna came to me and said , "They have arrived ."

Suddenly , I started sweating and I got scared . Even though Anna told me many good things about Mrs. Cameron and Mr. Cameron, but still I don't know why I started feeling that I might mess up things there.

These all are big people. I don't know how to talk in front of them, how to behave in front of them. I was getting scared . Even Anna isn't here. I don't know what should I do now. I was rubbing my hands against my dress but the sweat didn't seem to lessen. I was getting really scared now.

That's when Mr. Adams came in the kitchen.

" What happened Maya ? Why aren't you coming? Dan has been asking about you."

"I ..... I don't know what to do. She is your sister. I don't know how to behave in front of her. She might even think that I am using you. I.....I.....I just don't know what to do?

Talking in front of Mr. Adams, increased my anxiety even more.

" Listen Maya!" Mr. Adams' voice seemed calm for the first time.

"Look at me." He said . I looked at him with slight tears in my eyes. His eyes, I think, kind of softened looking at me.

"My sister and her husband , who is also my best friend, are very good people. They will not say anything bad to you just like I did." He said looking down with guilt.

" I am really sorry for behaving in such a manner to you. I didn't mean to disrespect you or question your character . But , I guess, all the female except my sister and Anna I have met , have always looked at me with a hunger for money in their eyes . Just for having a night with me , they would throw themselves and their dignity at me . That's why, I have a perception in a mind that every woman is a slut and a gold digger . I don't know about you . But , I very well know that I shouldn't have just said you all those things. I am really very sorry for calling you all those names. I didn't mean to do that.

I came in your room to talk to you. But , you were just either nodding your head or answering in a single word to me. This is why, I thought you are throwing tantrums at me and giving attitude. I am really sorry about my behaviour and trust me when I say, my sister and my best friend, they are better human beings than me . They'll welcome you in their hearts fully . You'll really get along with them well . Trust me everything will go good. Will you come with me now? They are waiting for you."

He said all this was looking straight into my eyes with such sincerity that I didn't realise when my anxiety vanished and my body temperature was normal . My heart beat was normal.

That's when I realised that Mr. Adams was holding my hands and looking straight into my eyes and my anxiety just kicked in again. I quickly released my hands from his and increased the distance between us. I slowly ran my hands through my hair and just checked my appearance and adjusted my dress looking in the full-length mirror that was attached to the wall in the dining room.

" I am ready." I said to Mr. Adams .

He smiled and said," Let's go."

We both went to the living room where are a man who I assume, is Mr. Cameron and a woman sitting with him is definitely Mrs. Cameron . They were talking to Anna and laughing their hearts out . They both looked like a beautiful couple and the love they both had for each other really was seen with the way they were sitting and talking to each other .

Mr. Adams asked me to come in front.

"Guys, this is Maya , My Wife ."

My Wife , this word again ran chill through me. The couple was looking at me with a smile on their face , clearly not judging me.

Mrs. Cameron got up from her from the couch, hugged me lightly and said, "Welcome to the family Maya." and smiled at me. I felt really nice a good vibe generated from her.

" Baby, at least introduce us to her." Interrupted Mr. Cameron.

"Oh yeah, sorry. I just forgot." She chuckled.

" I am Danielle. Your husband's sister and this handsome boy in this room is my husband Lucas Cameron."

Mr. Cameron came in front and hugged me. I usually don't like when strangers hug me. But, these two felt good , like a family.

"Welcome to the family Maya and I must really say that this guy over here , though he doesn't deserve but still , he got a really beautiful one , just like me." With that he placed a kiss over his wife's forehead making me adore their relationship so much.

"Okay, you guys sit and talk. I will just see if the dinner arrangements are ready or not." Interrupted Anna. She went towards the dining room.

Mrs. Cameron dragged me towards the couch and made me sit with her.

"Tell me about yourself. I am really excited to know my sister in law."

" And my sister." Screamed Mr. Cameron from another couch. We both chuckled.

"Dan , why don't we just have dinner right now . We'll talk later . " Mr. Adams said and Mrs. Cameron ignored him.

I noticed that. I looked at Mr. Adams to see that his face has fallen completely. I really felt guilty about making Anna and Mrs. Cameron upset with him . I even looked at Mr. Cameron who was looking at Mr. Adams like he deserved the silent treatment.

I don't know why but, I couldn't see his upset face. Anna told me how much both the siblings love each other and because of me, somewhere, both Anna and Mrs. Cameron were distant with Mr. Adams . I couldn't let this happen . Even if whatever he said to me was his mistake, he apologized to me . He understood his mistake and it was between both of us so, no one else should be upset with him for that. I am not someone who holds grudges for a long time. I guess, I should just forgive him and do something about his and Mrs. Cameron's issue.