Chapter 5 A Tutoring Gig Worth Five Billion Dollars?
1221 Words
Mia came from a powerful family that preferred to keep a low profile. If she wasn't working for the family business, she lived under an alias. Whether it was at school, in the lab, or on the job, she always went by Mia Wilson.
But just now, when she kissed the back of his hand, Oliver had called her Mia Brown.
Mia watched him closely as his eyes shifted. She could almost see the gears turning in that sharp mind of his, churning out at least a hundred possible explanations. Any one of them might be convincing enough to satisfy her.
This young guy clearly wasn't as innocent as he looked.
Three seconds later, his shoulders slumped and he held his hands up.
"I'm just gonna be honest."
"You'd better be."
"I'm serious. I'm one of the students you sponsored. Ring any bells? Five years ago, you paid college tuition for ten outstanding students. I was one of them."
He added extra emphasis on the word outstanding, clearly showing off. Typical cocky kid, worried his employer wouldn't appreciate his talent.
Mia thought about it. That did sound familiar. No wonder he felt familiar at the engagement party—she must have seen his picture back when she approved the sponsorship.
"But I never met any of you in person. How did you connect my name to me?"
Sponsoring students had been a routine task. All she did was sign papers.
"If you're determined, it's not hard to figure out where someone is." Oliver smiled brightly, his tone sincere. "I graduated from Harrison University. To thank you, I asked the school to help me get a picture of you. Then I used a little tech magic to find out that you work for the Manesdin Group. That's also how I found out about your engagement today..."
So he showed up, uninvited.
"Alright. Background check over."
Mia let go of her suspicions. She wasn't entirely sold on the whole gratitude angle, but worst-case scenario? He was using their connection to get a job. No harm in that.
She made a call to a brand she often worked with and asked them to send over several suits and casual outfits for James Miller.
Then she stepped into her oversized six-foot bathtub and enjoyed a long, luxurious soak.
The tension and shadows of death seemed to fade for a moment...
Meanwhile, while Mia was out of the room, Oliver dropped his smile and took out his phone. He had over 30 missed calls.
Twenty of them were from Assistant No. 1.
As soon as the line connected, a frantic voice practically cried out, "Oh thank God, Mr. Carter! I finally reached you. There are at least ten urgent documents waiting on your signature. We're talking about five billion dollars in funding!"
Oliver lowered his voice and scanned his surroundings. Even in private, his authoritative presence was hard to ignore.
"Sort them by urgency. Send remote access for authorization right now."
"Yes, Mr. Carter."
Without missing a beat, Assistant No. 1 forwarded ten pending documents through the secure remote work system.
Oliver's fingers moved fast, his eyes skimming each file with astonishing speed. One after another, names of top-tier financial groups flashed across the screen. If Lucas had been here, he probably would've turned green with envy.
Oliver wasn't some poor scholarship student. In fact, he was someone Mia had known for a long, long time.
It was clear she had completely forgotten about him. That stung a little.
But maybe that was for the best. This way, they could start over from scratch.
It took a full hour and a half to get through all ten documents.
Oliver rubbed his forehead and murmured to the person on the other end, "Once it's all handled, send me a summary report..."
"A report? What kind of report?"
Mia stood at the door, arms crossed, fully dressed and watching him with interest.
"Ah. Haha. It's my part-time tutoring gig," Oliver answered with a grin. The dominant energy from earlier vanished in an instant.
He shrugged casually. "You know how it is. I'm technically unemployed right now, so I'm helping a high school kid with his homework. He had to submit a big project today..."
On the other end, Assistant No. 1 was practically howling inside. 'High school student? I'm a top grad from Harrison University! I've spent ten years fighting through the corporate battlefield just to become your top assistant!'
Too bad he didn't get the chance to speak. His dear boss had already hurriedly hung up the call.
"No, you do have a job," Mia said, clearly uninterested in his excuses. She flicked her hair over her shoulder and walked toward the door. "Let's go, Mr. Miller. We're heading to Manesdin Group."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"You might wanna learn how to drive."
Oliver winked and opened the door for her. "As you command, my queen."
Mia had Oliver wait outside the Manesdin Group's main building. Once Lucas came to greet him, she walked in alone.
The moment Mia stepped through the doors, all eyes turned toward her. The chaos from this morning's engagement party had already gone viral within the company. Now she was the hottest topic on every gossip thread.
"Why's Mia even showing up today? I thought she and Mr. Manesdin were done?"
"Some nerve she has. If I were her, I'd be too embarrassed to show my face."
"She used to follow him around like a shadow. I don't believe for a second she actually let him go."
"Shhh! Keep it down. She just gave me a death stare!"
Whispers followed her everywhere. Mia had always been blunt and all-business. She didn't sugarcoat things and definitely didn't play favorites, which naturally made her plenty of enemies. Now that people thought she'd fallen out with Lucas, most were secretly thrilled.
But no one dared stop her. Technically, she was still Lucas's assistant—and she hadn't resigned.
Mia walked to the elevator like she always did. The bell chimed. When the doors opened, Lucas stood inside with a group of elite colleagues. Both sides froze in surprise.
Standing beside Lucas, in the spot that used to be reserved for Mia, was Ava.
Lucas visibly relaxed when he saw her but hesitated to speak. Ava quickly ducked behind him, pressing in close, as if terrified that Mia might do something dramatic.
Breaking the tension was Dante, the male assistant who always treated Mia like a rival. He stepped forward to block her path.
"Mia, what are you doing back here?"
"Tell me, is this not the Manesdin Group's headquarters?"
"Of course it is. You know that."
"Then maybe you're just not too bright, Dante. I have a legal contract with this company. That gives me the right to be here."
Dante's face turned red with anger. This infuriating woman! Even without Lucas's backing, she still dared to act like she owned the place. He was going to teach her a lesson.
He raised his voice, making sure everyone nearby could hear. "But Mr. Manesdin doesn't need you anymore. Ava is his new special assistant now."
"Oh?" Mia smiled slightly. She reached into her bag, pulled out a document, and looked past Dante toward Lucas.
"So, Lucas... are you saying you don't need this business proposal anymore?"
- Writer
