On a whim, Maya Rivers had used his hands to practice a new nail design.
He had gotten interested himself and tried doing one on his own nails.
He’d watched Maya Rivers do it so often, he’d learned just by observing.
The girl stared, completely stunned, at the manicure on the burly, over six-foot-tall man in front of her.
But the contrast was actually kind of endearing.
The girl let out a PFFT of laughter.
“What the heck, I’ll let you give it a try!”
Having successfully attracted a customer, Morgan Carter mimicked Maya Rivers’s tone and said cheerfully, “If you don’t like it, it’s free!”
When Maya Rivers finished with her customer in the back and came out, she saw Morgan Carter competently painting the girl’s nails.
She was practically dumbfounded, but with a customer present, she didn’t say anything.
She just watched Morgan Carter’s movements with her heart in her throat.
The girl found the situation amusing and took out her phone to record a video.
Morgan Carter saw this and said, “Please don’t film my face.”
He hated being filmed by others, except for Maya Rivers.
The girl laughed.
“Don’t worry, I’m just filming your hands.
I want to share this with my besties and show them the manicure I’m getting from a handsome guy.
You don’t mind that, do you?”
Morgan Carter grunted in acknowledgment.
“Thank you for promoting us.
If you post about us on social media and get 66 likes, we’ll give you a 20% discount on your next visit.”
The girl’s eyes lit up.
“Really?!”
Morgan Carter’s movements were focused and grew increasingly skillful.
“Of course.”
The knot of anxiety in Maya Rivers’s chest slowly loosened.
Morgan Carter was far more capable than she had imagined!
‘They had never discussed anything like offering discounts for getting likes on a social media post.
I can’t believe how naturally he said it!’
‘With reflexes like that, who would dare call him a fool?’
All her worries about him vanished.
By the time they both had a free moment, it was already ten o’clock.
Maya Rivers was exhausted, but she still had to grit her teeth and clean up the shop before going home.
Their revenue had seen a clear increase over the past few days, but raising two hundred thousand in a short period was still nearly impossible.
‘What am I going to do about such a large sum of money?’
“You go sit down.
I’ll take care of the cleaning.” Morgan Carter came over with a mop and took the rag from Maya Rivers’s hand.
Maya Rivers sat in a chair, watching Morgan Carter clean up efficiently, a sense of guilt welling up inside her.
‘If only I could raise the money for his surgery right away.’
On the way back, like a girl in love, Maya Rivers linked her arm with Morgan Carter’s and rested her head on his shoulder.
“I’m tired.
Let me lean on you for a bit.”
An irrepressible smile spread across Morgan Carter’s lips.
“Okay!”
Maya Rivers was truly exhausted.
Cradling Morgan Carter’s arm and half-leaning on his shoulder, she didn’t even have to watch where she was going.
Her mind went blank as she thought about how to get the money.
‘The high school reunion is tomorrow.
If I ask my classmates for a loan, would they lend me the money…?’
At this point, she was past caring about saving face.
As long as it wasn’t illegal or immoral, she was willing to try anything to get the money.
Two figures were staggering toward them.
Judging by their voices, they seemed to be drunk.
Maya Rivers straightened up and pulled on Morgan Carter’s arm, trying to circle around them to avoid trouble.
But to her surprise, one of them stepped directly in front of her, blocking her path.
Maya Rivers got a look at him under the streetlight—Luke Larkin!
“Get out of my way!” she said, glaring coldly at the drunken Luke Larkin, whose eyes were unfocused.
Luke Larkin had a lecherous grin on his face.
“Well, if it isn’t my dear little Maya.
Out so late?
Going to get a room, are we?”
The other drunk let out a vulgar laugh.
Maya Rivers felt Morgan Carter trying to pull his hand away.
‘Clearly, this impulsive simpleton is about to get into a fight for me again.’
Not wanting any trouble, she pulled Morgan Carter away, breaking into a light jog.
“Don’t cause a scene!”
Luke Larkin shouted after them.
“Maya Rivers, I’m gonna fuck you sooner or later!
Just you wait!
Hehehe…”
Morgan Carter’s eyes turned red.
He tried to go back, but Maya Rivers held his arm in a death grip.
“Morgan, forget it!!!”
She didn’t want to waste time on people like Luke Larkin.
A chill expression settled on Morgan Carter’s face.
“I’ll kill him sooner or later!”
His expression was so grim and terrifying that it seemed like he wasn’t just making an idle threat.
It made Maya Rivers feel like she was looking at a stranger, and she was scared.
She soothed him in a low voice, “He’s drunk.
Let’s just ignore him.
Morgan, promise me you won’t get into fights when we’re out.”
The ferocity in Morgan Carter’s eyes slowly faded.
He gave a slow nod and boldly grabbed Maya Rivers’s hand.
“Let’s go home.”
With her hand held in his large palm, a wave of warmth washed over her, and the frustration from being harassed seemed to dissipate.
She turned her hand in his and squeezed back, lacing their fingers together.
‘No wonder that silly girl Hilary York is so obsessed with romance.
This is what it feels like?
It’s amazing!
Just holding hands makes my heart feel like it’s full of pink bubbles!’
“Morgan, I’m going to a class reunion tomorrow night, so the shop will be closed.
After you get off work, just go home and get something to eat for yourself.
Don’t wait up for me.”
“I’ll come pick you up.”
“No, don’t.
You won’t be able to find it.”
“I can find it!”
His usual range of activity was limited to the area around the shop.
The reunion tomorrow was on the other side of the city, a good four or five miles away.
It would be a huge problem if he got lost.
“I said you’re not allowed to go, and that’s final.” When Maya Rivers’s tone became stern, Morgan Carter didn’t dare say another word.
The next day, when Maya Rivers arrived at the designated location, she was chagrined to find it was a high-end Western restaurant.
‘This is bad,’ she thought.
The per-person cost here was not cheap.
Even having to chip in for a group meal would pain her.
Just as she was taking out her phone to invent an excuse and head home, someone called her name.
“Maya Rivers!”
Maya Rivers quickly put her phone away and looked at the handsome man in front of her.
He was a high school classmate.
He looked familiar, but she couldn’t for the life of her remember his name.
She laughed awkwardly, trying to play it cool.
“Hey there, you’re here too.”
A resigned smile touched the man’s face.
“You can’t remember my name, can you?”
Maya Rivers still wouldn’t admit it.
“Of course I do!
You’re…
that one guy who was really good at his studies…”
The man didn’t let her squirm any longer and introduced himself.
“Oscar Quincy.
I sat at the desk behind you in our first year of high school.”
As soon as he said his name, Maya Rivers remembered.
“Right, right!
You were always pulling my hair back then!
You’ve changed so much, I almost didn’t recognize you!”
Back then, Oscar Quincy had been short and wore thick, black-rimmed glasses.
He was completely plain-looking.
Oscar Quincy laughed.
“I was actually pretty disappointed when you didn’t recognize me, but hearing you say that makes me feel a lot better.”
Reminiscing about their school days, Maya Rivers relaxed as well.
As the two of them walked toward the restaurant side-by-side, Oscar Quincy asked jokingly, “I’ve never seen you at any of our class reunions.
Is your husband too strict with you?”
‘Strict?
What man would dare be strict with me?
Even my own father couldn’t control me!’ Maya Rivers found his words rather uncomfortable.
Out of consideration for their shared past as classmates, she didn’t show her displeasure.
“You’re quite the kidder,” she said.
Oscar Quincy’s eyes glinted with amusement.
“You’re not actually married, are you?
You were the universally acknowledged beauty of our class.
If you got married, who knows how many of the guys would be crying in a corner somewhere.”
The more she listened, the greasier his words sounded.
Any good impression she had formed of his transformation vanished in an instant.
Her tone turned serious.
“Actually, I am mar—”
A voice cut in.
“Married?
What married?
My Maya doesn’t just fall for any man.”
Maya Rivers had just turned her head when she saw Hilary York’s beaming face.
Hilary York draped an arm over her shoulder, gave her a gentle squeeze, and shot her a meaningful look.
They had been friends for years, so Maya Rivers understood what Hilary York meant.
‘She knows my thing with Morgan is fake.
She wants to find a better, more suitable man for me.’
‘Ideally, someone like her own man—handsome, rich, and good to me!’
‘Morgan, that simple-minded giant who used to be a rich young master, obviously doesn’t make the cut.’
Hilary York asked Oscar Quincy, “So, big shot, I hear you’re doing really well for yourself in Stenham City.
What do you do?”
As the three of them were talking, they reached the main dining area, where a number of classmates had already arrived.
With a smooth, natural motion, Oscar Quincy pulled out a chair, gestured for Maya Rivers to sit, and answered Hilary York’s question in a voice just loud enough for everyone to hear.
“I’m no big shot, don’t be ridiculous.
I’m just getting by.
I’m a lowly director in the marketing department at The Westwood Group in Stenham, with a meager annual salary of only two million.”
Two million!
For everyone else present, that was a completely unattainable sum!