The ride back into town was quiet, not tensed just too quiet.
Aec didn't speak, just drove like the road owed him something. His hands gripped the steering wheel with that same silent authority he carried everywhere. I couldn't tell if he was deep in thought or just done with me. Either way, I didn't ask.
When he pulled up in front of my house, he didn't even bother killing the engine.
"This is you," he said simply.
No goodbye. No see-you-later.
Just that flat, cold, final.
I stared at him for a moment, hoping maybe he'd say something else. He didn't. So I got out, slammed the door a little harder than I meant to, and walked away without looking back.
We parted like strangers.
Inside, the silence was too loud.
I kicked off my shoes, dumped my bag on the couch, and pulled out my phone. The first thing I did was text Maxie.
Me: I'm home.
Before I could even drop the phone, it started ringing.
Of course it was Maxie
"Tell me everything, babes!" she screamed the second I picked up. "I've been dying here!"
I smiled, shaking my head. "You'll hear it all when I see you." I was trying to get her over
"You know if you want me there right now, I won't hesitate." she answered
"Then come for a sleepover, please. I'll be bored to death if I stay alone."
"Say less, I'm packing my overnight bag already!"
---
Maxie never wasted time. Less than an hour later, she was at my door, all energy and perfume.
The moment I opened it, she squealed. "Girl! You look suspiciously glowy! Don't play with me."
"There's nothing much to say," I said, trying to hide my smile.
"Oh, come on! You're blushing! Look at you!" She gasped dramatically. "He cooked for you, didn't he? He looks like the type who can make eggs sexy."
"Maxie!" I burst out laughing. "You're ridiculous."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Spill the tea before I explode."
We settled on the couch, and I started telling her what happened. Every detail, every reaction. She gasped, screamed, laughed, and made faces at all the right places.
"Oh my God, Sharon, he likes you. That's CEO language for you drive me crazy but I can't stop thinking about you!"
I rolled my eyes. "Please... Didn't you get the part where I said we are mad at each other currently?"
"I'm serious! That man wants you, girl!"
Before I could respond, my phone buzzed again. It was right next to her, so I told her to check it.
She looked at the screen… then froze.
Her eyes went wide like she'd just seen a ghost.
"What?" I asked. "Who's it from?"
"It's our Prince Sexy," she said, her voice almost trembling.
I frowned. "You don't mean Aec, right?"
"Oh, I do," she said, grinning now.
"What does it say?"
Maxie opened the message, read, then screamed and threw the phone on the bed.
"I never expected CEO Aec to be like this!"
"CEO Aec indeed...Maxie! What does it say?!"
She took a deep breath, picked up the phone again, and read slowly, "He asked if you settled in and if you're fine. Then he said" she paused, blushing, " 'Don't get hungry when you see me at work tomorrow.' Girl, what does that even mean?! Is that code?"
I couldn't stop laughing. "He's petty! That's what it means."
Before she could respond, the doorbell rang.
Maxie jumped up, still giggling, and ran to the door. Seconds later, her voice echoed from the living room.
"Uh, Sharon? There's a huge flower at your doorstep. Like, huge enough to hide a human!"
"What?!" I ran out to see for myself.
"I'll just tell the delivery guy wrong address," Maxie said quickly. "There's no way this is for you. You don't have any one generous enough to buy a whole garden."
The delivery guy, barely visible behind the bouquet, smiled awkwardly. "Delivery for Miss Sharon. And this package." He pointed to a small box at his feet.
Maxie turned slowly toward me, eyes wide. "Girl. Get your butt over here. Now."
I sighed, took the clipboard, and signed.
Maxie picked up the box while I took the flowers inside.
"Who's it from?" she asked, scanning for a card.
There was one.
A small white envelope with a single word written across it in bold handwriting: POOKIE.
Maxie gasped. "POOKIE?! Who calls you Pookie?"
I bit back a laugh. "Aec…"
She screamed like she'd just won the lottery. "I need me a CEO lover right now!"
---
The next morning, Maxie tried waking me up for work, but the moment her hand touched my forehead, she froze.
"Sharon, you're burning up."
I groaned. "It's just a little fever. I'll be fine."
"Fine? Girl, you look like death in silk pajamas." She frowned, placing the back of her hand on my cheek. "You're not going anywhere. I'll call in sick for you."
I didn't argue. My body felt like lead.
She tried calling work but no one picked up, so she texted instead, reporting me sick. I could barely stay awake. She left for work after asking a million times if I could stay by myself.
By the time I opened my eyes again, the sun had shifted, and Maxie was gone off to work. I checked my phone and saw messages from Tia and Gab wishing me a quick recovery. I reacted to them lazily.
Then Maxie's text popped up:
Maxie: You probably pregnant 😏
I smiled faintly.
Me: Yeah B, and you my baby daddy 😴
We joked a bit, then I drifted back to sleep.
---
Hours later, the pain got worse. My head pounded, my body ached. I dragged myself to the bathroom for a cold bath, but the chill only made it worse. My fingers trembled as I wrapped a towel around myself and stumbled back to the couch.
I must've fallen asleep again, because the next thing I heard was the doorbell ringing sharp and loud.
"Maxie?" I called weakly, but no one answered.
Then I heard the sound of someone punching in my door code.
My heart jumped, but relief washed over me when I saw who it was.
"Zion?"
He froze the second he saw me. "Sharon, what the hell... You look terrible."
"I'm fine," I lied.
"The hell you are." He moved to help me up, his hand firm under my arm. "You need a hospital."
I shook my head weakly. "No. Just a nurse. Please."
He frowned but didn't argue. Within minutes, he was on the phone, calling a home nurse.
She arrived quickly, set me up on a drip, gave me some injections, and told me to rest.
When Maxie returned later, she nearly screamed.
"Oh my God! Sharon!"
"Calm down," Zion said, getting up. "She's stable now."
They talked for a while, planning to take turns caring for me. Maxie would stay during the nights, Zion during the day. It went on for three days straight, them switching roles like some kind of worried tag team.
By the third day, I was feeling slightly better. Tia and Beatrice stopped by too, bringing food and laughter, and for the first time, I smiled.
That night, Maxie asked Zion to stay a bit longer since she was running late from work.
Around 8 p.m., my phone started ringing again. Zion picked it up, and I heard him chuckle.
"Labrador?" he read out loud, grinning. "That's what you saved this contact as?"
I groaned. "Don't you dare answer that."
He laughed, shaking his head.
But before he could say another word, the doorbell rang again.
He walked to open it expecting Maxie but instead, there he was.
Aec
The air shifted instantly.
They stood there, two tall men, same presence, same tension, same protective energy.
It was like watching thunder meet steel.
Aec's voice came first, low and calm but heavy.
"What are you doing here?"
Zion didn't back down. "Taking care of her. You?"
Their eyes locked. No one moved.
The atmosphere was suffocating.
I managed to get up, weak but alert.
"Aec…"
His eyes softened slightly when he saw me, but his tone stayed cold.
"Why didn't you tell me you were sick?"
"You're not a doctor, are you?" I tried to joke, but my voice came out strained.
"He isn't either," he shot back, glancing at Zion.
Zion stepped forward. "Watch your tone, man."
"Or what?" Aec countered, unmoved.
The air between them tightened again, sharp enough to cut.
"Stop it," I muttered. "Please."
Aec looked at me, then said, "Get your things. We're going to the hospital."
"You don't get to decide that," Zion snapped.
"She's not your patient," Aec replied. "Or your responsibility."
That did it. The tension cracked.
"Enough," I said firmly, voice trembling. "I'll go. Okay? Just… stop."
Zion looked at me, hurt flickering across his face. "Sharon…"
"I'll just go for a check-up and come back. Rest, okay?"
Zion didn't look convinced, but he didn't stop me either.
---
Aec helped me to the car silently.
"Can you walk, or should I carry you?"
I glared at him weakly. "I can walk."
At the hospital, he barely left my side. The tests were done quickly, but the results would take until the next day.
When the doctor asked where I'd like to rest, Aec answered before I could.
"She's not staying here."
"She should stay at the hospital," the doctor said.
"She's coming with me," Aec interrupted.
I gave him a look, then I whispered low-key. "Your wife won't bite, right?"
He didn't reply. Just opened the door for me like it was an order, not a gesture.
---
Back at his house, my phone rang again.
Maxie.
I picked up immediately.
"Girl, what the hell? You left Zion and went off like that, without telling me?"
"I'm fine, B. I just needed some air."
"Air? You're with your CEO lover boy, aren't you? Put him on the phone."
I sighed and put it on speaker.
"Listen here, Mister CEO," Maxie said, her tone sharp but playful. "If my homegirl doesn't come back looking better than she left, I swear I'll hunt you down myself."
Aec didn't say a word...
Not a word from Aec.
It was just the typical Aec doing what he knew best.
When the call ended, he glanced at me, then said quietly,
"She's protective."
"She's family." I corrected
He nodded once, then turned toward the stairs.
"Rest. I'll be in my office if you need anything."
I watched him go, feeling that same strange pull again the one that made me want to understand him, even when he gave me nothing to work with.
Maybe he really was impossible.
Maybe I was worse for still wanting to figure him out, but that shouldn't be my problem....
"Where does he keep his wife" I murmured under my breathe
One thing was certain
the silence between us was never empty.
It was full of things neither of us dared to say.