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Hayden was no where near pleased about what his brother had just suggested and that was mainly because he knew that his brother was spot on right. He clicked his tongue in annoyance as he frowned.

"Thank about it. Although, if I’m not wrong, you’ve already made up your mind," Harvey said with a knowing smile.

…

It became increasingly more challenging for me to listen closely to the conversation while handling my headache that was quickly making me feel nauseous. I could feel Hayden glancing over at me and I forced a smile to my lips to let him know that I was fine. It would be a problem if I got sick and distracted him from the meeting.

I was more than aware that my presence was already an inconvenience to Hayden without having him worry more about me.

Ethan was good at manipulating people with his words and actions as always and I realized that he wasn’t going easy on me. The questions that he asked were probably meant to provoke me and somehow use me against Hayden. Even though I knew that I couldn’t steel my mind and resolve enough to completely ignore his words and their implications.

Instead, my mind started forming trains of thoughts based on his words that led me to even more confusion and doubt than before. At this rate, I would become even more of a burden to Hayden and that thought scared me more than anything else.

"Malissa, are you curious to hear more about the partnership between Torex and Silva?" Ethan asked, his attention suddenly turning to me.

It took me a while for me to realize that he had directed a question at me.

While I was struggling about what to do, I felt a nudge on my ankle. I realized without looking down that it must have been Hayden. Instead, I glanced over at his face. I then gasped in surprise at the calm smile and reassuring smile that he gave me.

Slowly, Hayden shook his head at me a little and I was reminded that I didn’t have to do anything or respond in anyway to Ethan’s questions or provocations. After all, I didn’t have the permission to speak.

"Relax…" Hayden whispered so softly that I had to partially read his lips to understand fully what he had just said.

My face and my lips felt numb from the nervousness that I was feeling but I did manage to nod my head slowly at him. I didn’t want to burden him, but he must have realized that I wasn’t taking all of this too well. The fact that he seemed to care about me brought some warmth to my heart and relief to my mind. Hayden’s hand searched for mine under the table until he held my hand in his.

The heat of his hand in contrast to the coldness of mine made me even more aware that my hands were freezing. Hayden must have realized this as well.

"The aircon is too cold. Malissa’s hands are freezing. If you don’t mind, I’m going to ask the staff to adjust it," Hayden said over to Ethan.

"Sure. I’m fine with that," Ethan replied casually.

Hayden gave my hand a few reassuring squeezes which also worked to stimulate my circulation. Slowly, I started to relax while Hayden reached over to a button on the microphone located closer to him on the table.

"It’s too cold in here. Adjust the temperature," he spoke into the microphone before he switched it off again.

Hayden turned towards me before giving me a firm nod that told me that everything was going to be ok. I tried my best to smile back but I could tell that my smile was shaky at best. Hayden continued to hold my hand in his and that made me feel volumes better than before. I wasn’t sure what was going on with the whole deal just yet, but I knew that I had to try my best to trust Hayden.

I have to try harder.

"Malissa, I asked you this before the last time we met. What do you think about helping me unite Torex and Silva? Peace is supposed to be a great thing, right?" Ethan asked again and I could tell that he wasn’t willing to back down.

My attention returned to Ethan, and I could feel his eyes staring at me. I started feeling anxious once again from the pressure but that didn’t last for long. My eyes returned to Hayden immediately when I felt the pad of his thumb gently stroking the back of my hand. That’s right, I didn’t have to answer to anything. It was fine even if I didn’t have a response.

"What orders did you give her this time? Why isn’t she answering any of my questions?" Ethan asked as he finally realized that my lack of response must have been because of some agreement that I had with Hayden.

"You haven’t figured it out yet? She won’t answer any of your questions unless I allow her to," Hayden replied casually.

"And you’re fine with that? That he’s keeping you on a leash? I never did anything this cruel to you when we were together…" Ethan asked as his eyes settled on my face.

The truth was, when Hayden suggested the rule, I had thought that he was doing it for his own sake and for the sake of the negotiation. I knew that it could be disadvantageous to us if I said the wrong things or spoke out of turn. However, since the meeting had started, I slowly began to understand that the rule was put in place more for my sake than for anything or anyone else.

Hayden made those rules to protect me. I understood that now with certainty. The rules were designed to protect me from Ethan as much as possible.

--To be continued…