Stranger in my Ass-Chapter 293

Olivia’s POV

"Why did you even go into love therapy?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"It was something I picked up interest in while looking for love myself," he said. "Started as a hobby, not a business. I wanted to understand what I was missing, why I couldn’t feel for anyone else what I felt for you."

"Is that why you poached Alex?" I asked. "My visit to your office?"

He nodded, looking slightly ashamed.

"I wanted to remove him from your life," he admitted. "Get him away from you. I hadn’t expected you to follow him to my company, though."

He paused, then started laughing.

"And definitely didn’t expect you to show up dressed as a man."

I burst out laughing too, the absurdity of it all hitting me fresh.

"Oh God," I gasped between giggles. "Oliver. I can’t believe I actually did that."

"You really committed to it too," Maxwell said, his laughter genuine and warm. "The walk. The voice. The swagger. It really ticked me off."

"And you knew the whole time." I said, still laughing.

"From the moment you walked into my office," he said. "But watching you try so hard to act like a man was... actually kind of adorable. Even when it was driving me insane."

We laughed together, the sound filling the small car, and for a moment everything else fell away - the danger, the complications, the hurt between us.

"Now that I think about it," I said, wiping tears of laughter from my eyes, "it was absolutely crazy. What was I thinking?"

"You were thinking you’d outsmart me," Maxwell said with a grin. "And you almost did. You were very convincing."

I sobered slightly, remembering another question I’d been dying to ask.

"Can I ask you something else?"

"Always."

"That time I was staying in your mansion," I started carefully. "We had that misunderstanding, and you came back acting drunk and delirious. We ended up... you know. Having sex that night." I looked at him directly. "Were you actually drunk? Were you aware of what was happening?"

Maxwell smiled.

"I was very much aware," he said, his voice dropping lower. "I didn’t drink much. Just enough to smell like alcohol."

My eyes widened. "What? So you were faking?"

"Not entirely," he clarified. "I did drink. Just not enough to lose control. I was aware of every single thing that night."

Heat flooded my body at the intensity in his gaze.

"Every single thing?" I repeated weakly.

He nodded, leaning slightly closer.

"I remember exactly how it felt," he said softly. "How every inch of your body fit perfectly beneath mine. How you felt wrapped around me. How amazing it felt to be inside you. How you sounded when you..."

"Okay!" I cut him off, my face burning. "I get it!"

I tried to cover my embarrassment with laughter, but I could feel the effect his words were having on me - the warmth pooling low in my stomach, the way my breath had shortened.

"So you knew about the sheets too?" I asked, desperately trying to change the subject. "The next morning, when I was trying to destroy the evidence?"

Maxwell’s laughter was rich and warm.

"Oh, I knew," he said. "I knew literally everything, Olivia. Every scheme, every plan, every moment you thought you were getting away with something."

I groaned, burying my face in my hands.

"This is so embarrassing."

"It’s adorable," he corrected.

I peeked at him through my fingers.

"Which of my actions did you consider the craziest?" I asked.

Maxwell thought for a moment, his expression amused.

"When you tried to kill us both," he said. "Getting in that car, knowing you couldn’t drive but having no choice because you’d lied about being an expert driver on your resume."

I burst out laughing at the memory.

"Oh God, I was terrified!" I admitted. "I thought we were going to die that night!"

"We almost did," Maxwell said, but he was smiling. "Multiple times."

"What else?" I asked, genuinely curious now.

His smile turned mischievous.

"The toilet water."

I froze. "What?"

"When you gave me toilet water as revenge for making you clean my bathroom," he said, his eyes dancing with amusement. "That was... inspired."

"I completely forgot about that!" I gasped, then dissolved into laughter again. "Oh my God, I can’t believe I did that! I’m so sorry!"

"Don’t be," Maxwell said, shaking his head. "It was deserved. And honestly? It was kind of impressive. Very creative revenge."

We sat there laughing together, and it felt good. Right. Like maybe we could get past everything that had happened and find our way back to something real.

"One more question," I said, still smiling.

"Shoot."

"That time I talked to you as my stranger and told you to beat Maxwell up," I said, trying to keep a straight face. "Did you actually beat yourself up?"

Maxwell shook his head, laughing.

"How could I?" he said. "I just wrapped myself in bandages and pretended to be in pain."

"NO!" I shrieked with laughter. "You faked the whole thing?"

"The whole thing," he confirmed, grinning. "I came to work looking like I’d been in a fight, and you bought it completely."

"I felt so happy and somehow guilty!" I protested, still laughing. "I thought I’d actually gotten you hurt!"

"Mission accomplished," he said.

We laughed together until my sides hurt and I could barely breathe, and it felt like something was healing between us. Like maybe all the pain and the lies and the manipulation could be forgiven, could be laughed about, could become just part of our story instead of the end of it.

The laughter finally subsided, and we sat in comfortable silence for a moment.

Then Maxwell’s expression grew more serious.

"I’m sorry," he said quietly. "For everything. All of it. The lies, the games, the hurt I caused you. I’m so sorry, Olivia."

I nodded, not trusting my voice.

What else could I say?

My dilemma was finally sorted out. I’d spent so long wondering what I’d do about my feelings for both Maxwell and the stranger, wondering how I could possibly choose between them.

And thankfully, beautifully, impossibly - they were the same person.

For the first time in a long time, the universe was being kind to me.

"So what should we do now?" Maxwell asked, breaking the silence.

I looked out at the rain, still coming down steadily.

"I guess we wait out the storm," I said. "Right here."

Maxwell sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"I’ve been stressing both you and the baby lately," he said. "If care isn’t taken, this baby might turn out to be Aquaman with all the water-related trauma."

I burst out laughing, the image too ridiculous not to.

"Aquaman?" I repeated between giggles. "Really?"

"Think about it," Maxwell said, warming to the theme. "Almost drowned while pregnant. Currently stuck in a car during another storm. This kid is going to be born with gills."

"Oh my God, stop!" I was laughing so hard I could barely breathe. "That’s terrible!"

"I’m just saying," Maxwell continued, fighting his own laughter, "we should probably stay away from bodies of water for the rest of the pregnancy. Just to be safe."

"You’re ridiculous," I said, wiping tears from my eyes.

"But I made you laugh," he pointed out softly.