Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Step aside!
For a while, Elijah stared into this stranger’s eyes, both of them holding back their tongue. and their expression unreadable as if they were having a standoff.
“Wow, if I didn’t watch the news, I would have never believed a man of such aura and vital presence was the useless house-husband of Miss Melina.” The stranger broke the silence by saying, looking at Elijah with interest as though he was examining a priceless gem.
Yet, Elijah felt disinterested in whatever this guy had to say, so he simply ignored him and kept on staring at the woman standing in front of them:
“So, about your manager…” Elijah asked, looking at the woman in a composed manner. “When I thought you couldn’t get any intriguing, you prove me wrong again, huh?” The handsome man smirked and shook his head. Drawing a long breath, Elijah raised a brow and looked at him with suspicion, asking, “Are you trying to flirt with me?”
The woman at the counter pressed her lips in a firm line, holding in her giggle as her eyes widened.
Silently, Ryan eyed Matt, and they both smiled lightly, shocked by their boss’s words and yet, at the same time impressed.
“Well… I wouldn’t call it, ‘Flirting.’ But I am inquisitive of you, nonetheless,” The gentleman chuckled, not breaking eye contact with Elijah, “And I have a gut feeling that I want you on my side… My gut feeling is never wrong.”
“You have been saying a lot of words, but none of them answers my first question,” Elijah replied casually, not even bothering to hide his boredom. “Hmm… Yes. We don’t know each other. But I was intrigued by your actions and approach at the boutique, and meeting you here, on the same day, feels
like fate,” The gentleman said in a soft tone, his smile growing wider, his eyes shining with amusement. “Pardon?” Elijah raised a brow, looking at him with skepticism.
The man’s expression suddenly shifted into a cold and stoic one as he said, “I am a very hard man to please, Mr. Darius… And I am not the kind to chase, instead of waiting for my prey to choose me for themselves”.
“Okay, but I am not a follower or an ass kisser,” Elijah interrupted curtly, glaring at him. “Well, for years, didn’t you kiss Melina’s-”
“Don’t you dare go down that road!! I can promise you that you wouldn’t like the result!” Elijah hissed as the corners of his lips curved into a snarl, his eyes filled with fury.
The atmosphere immediately became tense, and for a few moments, nobody dared to move. Then slowly, the handsome, young man let out a heavy breath and murmured softly, “I apologize for getting you riled up. I thought using an informal approach of joking would get your attention. I wasn’t aware that I crossed
“What’s keeping the line!!” A sharp and angry shout sounded from behind the four men.
Immediately, Ryan, Elijah, Matt, and the fellow looked back to see who it was, and their gaze rested on a fancily dressed, blonde-haired female that stood with a mad look on her face. Then her eyes suddenly widened, darting away from Elijah to the man, smiling as she uttered softly, “Bryan… Mr. Check! it’s you… I can not believe it. I have all the magazines featuring you as one of the country’s top CEOs. OMG! I cannot believe I am talking with you right now!!”
Scratching his neck, Bryan felt embarrassed by her sudden outburst. However, he soon recovered from the awkwardness and said, “Hi,”
“Can I get an autograph?” She said, rushing over to him and pushing Elijah, causing him to step back in surprise as he looked at her in confusion. “An ‘excuse me,’ would have been nice,” Elijah commented sarcastically, sighing out his frustration.
Instead of letting his remark slide, she circled, glared at him, and blurted out, “Well, next time when you see someone coming in your direction, don’t stand in their way!!” Before Elijah could answer, she turned around, dismissing him and glowing with excitement again when she stared at Bryan.
But his face had suddenly darkened, his jaw clenched tightly, and his gaze was now fixated on the woman who just insulted Elijah as he said, “Step aside! You are interrupting my conversation with him.”
“Excuse me?!” Her eyes bulged out of their sockets as she stared wide-eyed in shock, completely baffled that he would speak to her in that tone. “Step aside!” Bryan repeated firmly in a tone that showed he was done with her nonsense.
After taking a few steps back and crossing her arms across her chest, she pouted her lips, and chuckled in embarrassment, lowering her eyelids as she muttered rudely, “Fine… Have a nice day then…!!” Watching her storm off, Elijah squirted his eyes and mumbled, “Didn’t she come to do a transaction?”
Watching Bryan, the teller felt convinced that Elijah was not just anyone because she knew who Mr. Checks was, and he was not the kind to stand up or be this respectful to just anybody.
“Since you know my name, this is my call card,” Bryan said as he reached into his pocket and
pulled out a business card and handed it to Elijah before adding, “Please use it.”
Feeling reluctant, Elijah took the business card and gave it a look before putting it inside his inner jacket pocket.
With his eyes on him, Bryan cleared his throat, and Elijah scowled as he asked, “What?”
“Are you not going to give me your number?” Bryan asked curiously with an amused grin plastered on his face.
It was clear that this guy’s sudden interest in him was not ordinary or simple. But Elijah knew that in the world of business you have to shake hands with anyone until you can unmask them to know if you are dancing with an angel or a devil, so he took out his phone. Silently, he brought out the card and dialed the number, looking up at Bryan when his phone
started to ring
“There! You have my number.” Elijah said, ending the call, and putting his phone away with the card.
“Well, I will take my leave then,” Bryan said, smirking slightly and walking away, leaving a confused look on Elijah’s face.
However, after a moment, he shrugged his shoulders and looked back at the lady with a smile, and her expression seemed way more enthusiastic to serve him than before. “Black!” She called out to security nearby, whose attention was immediately drawn to her. When he reached the counter, she looked at him and said, “Can you please take… umm… Mr. Darius to Mr. Walker’s office?”
After a short pause, he nodded his head, looked at Elijah, Ryan, and Matt, and said, “Follow me please.”
The three men trailed silently behind as they followed the guard toward the elevator and got inside, watching the doors close. When the elevator came to a stop and its metal doors opened to reveal another hallway, Ryan and Matt kept Elijah in the middle of them as they walked out of the elevator,
down the corridor, following the guard to a huge wooden door at the end of the hall. Stopping in front of the door, the guard knocked twice, pushing it open when he heard,” Come in!”
The security then waited for Elijah, Ryan, and Matt to step past him before closing the door behind them.
As soon as they stepped inside, an elderly man in a suit approached Elijah and said with a smile as he extended his hand, “Mr. Maxwell, what a pleasure to meet you in person. It’s an honor to have you in our building! Your father is one of my most important clients in the bank…” RêAd lat𝙚St chapters at Novel(D)ra/ma.Org Only
When Elijah raised a brow and took his hand in his and shook it, Allen let out, “Umm… Well, not this branch but the one in Bordoria. When he told us that he was transferring such a huge amount to this branch in his son’s-“.
“My father told you about me?!” Elijah exclaimed with calm eyes, staring at Allen in complete disbelief and confusion.
Allen’s smile faded as he answered carefully, “Uh… well… umm… Yes! The change of your last name from Maxwell to Darius had to be understood by me, and he made it clear, so we would be able to accept the funds without any problems.”
Even though Elijah didn’t utter a word, his expression clearly showed the shock that he was feeling inside his head, his expression changed into one of utter disbelief as he kept looking at him.
When Allen noticed, he let go of Elijah’s hand and said nervously, “Well I’m sorry for intruding, sir! But please know that we keep our client’s information confidential, so-” “Well, then, does that mean I can not ask you about Bryan Checks… Just how much he’s worth and his financial status?” Elijah asked in a curious tone with a casual expression as he took a seat on a sofa, crossing his leg over the other.
When Allen let out a nervous chuckle as he scratched the back of his head, Elijah smirked and said, “You know who my father is, right?”
With a nervous smile, Allen answered, “Of course I do, Mr. Maxwell! Your father has his fingers in every major bank’s accounts! It’s very impressive!”
“Well, imagine him pulling out all his money from your banks? Poof!! Just like that! Gone! Within a blink of an eye.” Elijah spoke coldly, as he continued, “Now tell me.” Swallowing hard, Allen could feel his throat dry as fear suddenly gripped him, and his breathing accelerated rapidly, suppressing the terror of getting fired if the bank lost such an important client. But he quickly adjusted his collar up, trying to hide his trembling body, and mumbled, “I can’t. Mr. Checks’ information is confidential too. I am very sorry, Mr. Maxwell!!”