14. Men and Mysteries

AYRA

The late afternoon sun poured mildly through the window of my car as Raven drove me to Yolo Entertainment. Its golden light spilled across the dashboard like honey, casting a warm glow that did nothing to calm my nerves.

Raven had been chattering my ears off about a game she was going to see over the weekend, she was a full-blown cricket fanatic. She could talk for hours about stats, team line-ups, or controversial umpire calls. And while she went on about how excited she was to see the national team live again, my mind was lightyears away, still stuck on those damn documents.

Who sent them?

Raven had told me not to stress about it, that it would have easily been Brielle like i initially thought. “You know how she is,” she said with a shrug, “probably trying to swoop in like a secret guardian angel and save the day.”

I wanted to believe her. I even considered texting Brielle, but she was knee-deep in a court case this week. I’d only be able to get through to her later tonight—if I was lucky.

Still, deep down, I had a gut feeling it wasn’t her. Sure, Brielle could pull the strings to get her dad to outbid whoever was trying to get to Matt. But this? Buying it out and delivering confidential documents to my literal doorstep like groceries? That was a whole different ball game. That wasn’t her style. At least, not the Brielle I knew.

We had just pulled into the underground parking garage when I spotted Travis.

I blinked in surprise. “What the...?”

He was walking toward us, casually but with purpose, and I immediately felt thrown off. I hadn’t been told he’d be showing up today.

Travis had grown out his beard since the last time I saw him, and it suited him, it made him look older, more grounded. There was a new bulk to his frame too; he was definitely getting in shape for a role.

His cool blue satin shirt shimmered slightly under the lights, the top two buttons left undone just enough to toe the line between charming and cocky. He wore sleek black pants, and his transparent, round rectangular glasses added a modern, artsy touch. His hair had grown longer too, now slightly unkempt, giving him a kind of polished-hippy vibe.

“Hi Ayra, lucky to catch you here,” he said, flashing that signature dazzling smile. “You’re just the girl I was looking for.”

I raised a brow, amused. “Really? I didn’t know you’d be coming today.”

He stepped closer, each stride full of confidence, while his assistant followed just a few paces behind.

“Oh, my management sent me over to talk to you about doing a few outings together. You know for the sake of our onscreen chemistry. They think it’ll help get the audience more invested.”

Was that why Matt called me over? I had thought he finally wanted to come clean about this insane turn of events.

I offered him a polite smile. “That’s interesting. I was called here, but my manager doesn’t know anything about this meeting. I’m so sorry. My team tends to run things a bit… differently.”

He waved it off with a shrug. “It’s fine. Let’s go in together,” he said, stretching his hand out to take mine.

I looked at him with a puzzled expression, trying to figure out what he was doing. “Uhmm...”

“We can start now,” he said, his lips curling into a smirk. “It wouldn’t be that bad holding my hand, would it?”

I suddenly felt silly. “I’m sorry. I’m so out of it today,” I said, slipping my hand into his.

“Anything eventful happen?” he asked, peering at me with a look that bordered on concern.

I gave a dry smile. “My life is a series of eventful events.”

*******

We stepped into Matt’s office to find him on a video call with, judging by her dazzling smile and soft curls, none other than Hannah.

As soon as our eyes met, he gave me a grin, then quickly ended the call. “I’ll be right back, honey. Daddy has grown-up business to attend to.”

I tried not to roll my eyes at the line.

He turned to me, still grinning ear to ear. I couldn’t help but think...was this the same man who sat across from me a few days ago, all doom and gloom, claiming he had no choice but to corner me into a deal?

“Ayra, you do not know how happy I am to see you.” Then he turned to Travis. “You’re here too! Sorry we haven’t reached out to your company sooner about promotions. Both our teams have decided it’d be great for you two to be seen together more often as it’ll help with the film’s exposure. And now that Ayra’s no longer with her ex-husband, there’s no image conflict. Fans will eat it up.” He looked at me directly. “Do you have a problem with this arrangement?”

I gave a casual shrug. “Of course not. I’m happy to be working with Travis—he’s been a darling.” I added a playful wink.

Travis shot me a grin that might’ve bordered on flirtatious, but before he could say anything, his assistant leaned in to whisper something in his ear. His expression shifted slightly, more serious now.

“Sorry, Ayra, I’ve got to go,” he said, then handed me his phone.

I arched an eyebrow.

“It’ll be easier contacting you directly,” he said.

I nodded, typing in my number. “Alright.”

And just like that, he was off, striding out of the office like a man with a schedule packed to the brim.

Once the door shut behind him, I turned to Matt and crossed my arms, leveling a look at him that made it clear I wasn’t here for pleasantries.

“So? Who was it?” I asked, my voice firm after a beat of silence.

“Was what?” he replied, all innocence.

I leaned forward, resting my palms on his desk. “Don’t play dumb with me, Matt. My fate was sealed. And now you’re acting like that never happened?” I narrowed my eyes and lowered my voice. “I need to know if I just made a friend or an enemy.”

He let out a low chuckle and leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers. “You won’t let this go, huh?”

“You know I won’t. So stop wasting my time.”

“I won’t say they were a friend… but definitely not an enemy.” He looked at me meaningfully. “Trust me, Ayra. Would I really go out of my way to put you in a bad spot?”

I scoffed. “Are you seriously asking me that? Of course you would and I just learned that the hard way.”

He looked taken aback. A flicker of guilt crossed his face, though he tried to mask it. “I wouldn’t go out of my way, Ayra. That situation was out of my hands.” He paused, letting the silence settle before continuing. “Besides, we’re past that now. And if you don’t trust that I wouldn’t hurt you, then at least trust that I wouldn’t sign away my entire future and investment if I thought it would come back to bite me in the ass.”

I tilted my head. “So you can’t give me a name? Not even a hint?”

“I’m sorry, Ayra. I signed a non-disclosure agreement. My hands are tied.” He leaned forward, eyes gleaming. “But what I can say is… from now on, your interests are well protected.”

I watched him carefully, unsure whether to feel relieved or even more suspicious.

Then he smiled slowly and mischievously.

“In fact,” he said, voice lowering with intrigue, “I do have some good news. And you’re going to be very shocked.”