Page 46 of Maxim

“The very best,” she says without missing a beat.

“So I should trust Maxim?”

“Trust should be earned. Not given freely,” she says, making my heart sink. “But I would put my money on him. The main thing I’ve learned from the little bit I’ve spent around Maxim’s friend is that he doesn’t go out of his way for just anyone. I don’t think you realize how dangerous it is for me to be here right now. So Maxim must be a man of integrity if I’m here right now as a favor.”

I don’t know her from Adam, but for some reason, her words offer me a small level of comfort. She could be lying to me, but I have a feeling she is telling me the truth.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

“Of course.” She leans back in the chair and looks back out the window. “If you ever want to talk about your situation, I’m more than willing to listen. We both know I understand what you’ve been through.”

Should I open up to her? She’s not wrong when she says that she would understand when most people wouldn’t.

I take a deep breath. “Like I said, my father sold me.” Out of the corner of my eye, I watch her tense, but I keep going. “I always knew I was a puppet for him. A means to an end. At first it wasn’t too bad. He would have me working the bar during his business dealings.” I cringe just thinking about being dressed in small scraps of fabric because he demanded it. “Then one day I messed up.”

“Let me guess, you pissed him off,” she says knowingly.

I nod and push through. “Next thing I know is I’m kneeling on rice, and he’s telling me that I’ll never see my siblings again. After that it was like what you went through, only I ended up here.”

“I’m sorry,” she says sincerely.

“I’m sorry too.”

We fall silent for a moment, both lost in the past and what we’ve been through.

“Well, as far as I can tell, you lucked out with your buyer,” she says, making me smile.

“Yeah, I guess I did.” I wince. “I haven’t been easy on him, though.”

Her eyes drop to my wrists, so I bury them under the blanket, out of sight.

“You said you have siblings,” she asks.

Her change of subject catches me so off guard I shake my head. “Yeah, a brother and sister. I’m the oldest.”

“Do you think they are safe with your father?”

“Is anyone truly safe?” She raises a brow at my question, making me sigh. “No. I don’t think they are. It’s only a matter of time before something happens since I’m not there anymore. Maxim, though, he says that nothing will happen and I just have to trust him.”

“I know it’s not easy, but you should. You have to start believing everything will work out. Just give it some time, okay?”

“Okay.” I nod, agreeing just to agree.

She claps her hands. “Now tell me, how do you feel about pho? Because I’m fucking starving.”

“I’ve never had it before. What is it?”

Thea gasps as if she’s offended. “Well, shit, we can’t have that now, can we? It’s a brothy, soupy goodness. Just trust me, and I’ll order for you. Is there anything that you don’t like?”

“I’m not picky.”

“You’re going to love it. Just wait,” she says as she whips out her phone.

As she places the order, I look down and smile. This wasn’t how I expected the afternoon to go, but I can’t say that I’m mad about it.

For the first time, I feel myself relaxing. I don’t have to run after my siblings even if they are always on my mind. Maxim isn’t the monster I thought he was. And now I have a friend. At least, I hope I do.

Maybe everything really will be all right.

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