Thinking about Jack’s words, Mia Mills sat on the couch and stared at the television, unable to focus. He could be right. If she was in Paris that week and if they went after her, they would have caught her completely off guard.

It didn’t take long for Sophia to return, and she grabbed the plates and tableware in the kitchen to set the table in the living room. She glanced at the still-distracted Mia Mills, wondering what such a gorgeous young woman was doing there. Her father said she was his boss’ daughter, but that was even stranger.

Jack came from the kitchen with a bowl of salad and a pot of stew that he put on the table. He went back to the kitchen again, returning with a small bowl of white rice.

Sophia stared at the rice and said, “I made that today in the kitchen. Kind of funny, the texture. It has no taste whatsoever, and it only needs a bit of salt.”

Jack signalled with his eyes in Mia’s direction, and Sophia went silent. It was dangerous if someone heard her say those things, considering no one was supposed to know that neither she nor her father were from that World.

Mia Mills came to the table, and while frowning at the food, she asked, “You don’t have spring water? And I can’t eat such kind of food. Maybe just the salad and a bit of meat, and that’s it.”

While pouring water into a glass from a bottle that he quickly opened, Jack answered, “You can drink this. I think I also have some alcohol in a cabinet if you like. Eat whatever you want; I don’t really care about your tastes.”

Sophia disguised a smile and asked, “So, what is your name, and what happened for you to be here? I know my father is pretty, but it is too weird that his boss’ daughter would fall for him right after I told him I didn’t mind if he got married again!”

“I would never fall for him! That is just plain ridiculous! I am Mia Mills, heir of the Mills Corporate. I was almost kidnapped this morning, and your father saved me. My father asked him to keep me hidden for a few days while he tried to figure out who could be aiming at me, so here I am, hidden in this…” While moving her open hand around, she continued, “… this tiny apartment! I feel suffocated here! This apartment would fit in my room with plenty of space to spare!”

With a slight frown, Sophia asked her father, “She is too full of herself, isn’t she? You were in danger because of her? Please tell me you didn’t do anything foolish to save her! And how did you save her, exactly?”

Noticing the seriousness in her eyes, Jack Cross sighed and explained everything without leaving anything out.

In the end, Sophia was boiling in anger, and while grabbing her fork, she started to bend it while staring at the puzzled young woman who heard her say, “Are you telling me that because of some chick that you never met, or in this case, never spoke to without her being rude to you, you risked your life to save her? Did you ever, for one moment, think about me? What if you had died because of her? What would happen to me? And why did you bring her here? What if those guys come for her? Then what?”

“In my defence, I can only say I had no intention of doing anything, but before I knew it, my body moved on its own and I reacted. My danger alarm went off the roof at that time, and I didn’t even think about you, me, or anything else. But we are perfectly safe here. At my work, I didn’t give them this address yet; they still have my old address, and her father said he wouldn’t tell anyone my name or with whom she is. I am also going to get a very big bonus and a raise. That was what I asked to protect her.”

While bending her fork to the normal position, Sophia said, “More money doesn’t pay for all this risk. We should throw her out and let her handle things for herself. She is big enough to be perfectly fine all alone. And if our apartment is too small for her and her big head, it’s one more reason for her to leave and never come back.”

Before Mia Mills could answer, Jack shook his head for her to be quiet and said, “I doubt she would be safe all alone. From what I could see today, she is used to a certain kind of life, and she has no idea how to do the most basic things. In that case, she is in a worse situation than you and me. You know what we must do, Sophia. Protecting the innocent, or in this case, the completely stupid, is our duty.”

Mia Mills exploded. “Stop insulting me! I was never, and I will never be, stupid! Ever since I met you today, you have kept insulting or annoying me! What the hell did I do to you for you to hate me this much?”

“I already told you; I don’t hate you, I just don’t like you. You never once treated me well, ever since I started working for your father’s company, so what do you expect? That I miraculously forget all your rudeness and insults? Now eat your salad and the meat, or whatever you like, and let me talk with my daughter. So, why were you suspended? It was because of those girls you beat up yesterday?”

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“Yes. I helped in the kitchen today, and after lunch, the Principal wanted to talk with me and Emma. Even with him pressuring her, she denied seeing anything yesterday, but because those three girls went to the hospital, and one of them will be there in recovery for a few days, and without any more proof besides what they said, he suspended us. We both denied that I had done anything, but I got one week and Emma got two days. Tomorrow morning, he wants to have a meeting with you, Emma’s parents, and those three girls’ parents, so you better be prepared for that. He gave me a letter. I suppose it is with the hours for you to be there.”

Jack looked at the letter that Sophia gave him, and after a quick read, he said, “What kind of man is your Principal?”

“He seemed okay during our time in the kitchen, but in his office, he acted differently. He was arrogant and didn’t even give us the benefit of the doubt.”

“Well, you beat up those girls, so…”

“Yes, but I also suffered a lot on their hands. Want to hear what they did to me all these past weeks?”

After a complete description of all the times Eliza and her friends bullied her, or better yet, bullied the previous Sophia Cross, Mia Mills was surprised to even say a thing, and Jack was frowning.

Since both of them were still silent after a few seconds, Sophia said, “Now you see why I got enough of them yesterday, and I rubbed the floor with their faces. Or in Eliza’s case, I rubbed a wall with her face.”

“So, what am I supposed to say tomorrow morning in that meeting?”

“I don’t know; maybe you can say I am sorry and I won’t do anything like that ever again? Or you can threaten the Principal and the other parents. Or warn them that next time they try to bully me, I will kill them instead of just sending them to the hospital? I will let you decide. Whatever you choose, I will do what you say; you know that. But I already talked with my classmates, and they are going to give me their notes for the day with the subjects of all the classes I will miss, and like that, I can study here and I won’t fall behind.”

Jack nodded, and Mia was completely dumbfounded. She looked at father and daughter, unable to believe what she was hearing, and she finally asked, “Are you really going to do what she said? Who is the parent here? Geez, this is so messed up!”

“If it was you, what would your father do? Would he ask you, or would he decide everything all alone?”

“My father would close that school for good, fire that Principal, and make sure to ruin the lives of those bullies’ families! But he would never ask me what to do!”

“That is one major difference between your family and ours. Ever since my wife died, we made a promise. Anything that we would do or anything that would happen to any of us, we would decide together and face everything together, until the end. It has worked so far, so I see no reason for us to change our agreement. I will see what happens tomorrow morning, and depending on what they will say and how they will react, I will decide if I apologise on her behalf or if I will threaten them all.”

The glow in his eyes and the seriousness on his face made Mia remember everything he did in the morning. He was absurdly fast and so violent that before she even had time to process what was happening, he had already knocked out three guys and driven away with her.

Without knowing why, Mia felt her heart pounding, and she could only think about how cool he was that morning, and now, with that seriousness and eyes full of anger, he looked absurdly terrifying, and for a moment, she thought she was before an extremely dangerous wild animal, and she could almost swear she heard him growling in a very low voice.

Noticing how Mia was staring at her father, Sophia asked, “Everyone finished? Can I go wash the dishes?”

“Wait a moment, I got some fruit from the store,” said Jack while going to the kitchen.

Mia Mills looked at him leaving in silence, with Sophia asking, “You fell for him already? It took you long enough!”

“No… no, I didn’t! I just… he puzzles me, I suppose. He looks calm all the time, but then suddenly he changes, and even his expression gets scary.”

“Stick around him, and you might find a few interesting things about him. He may look calm and quiet, but I already saw a bunch of women fall for him because of the way he is. You would just be another one.”

Before Mia could say anything, Jack returned and placed a bowl of fruit on the table. Mia Mills frowned at the apples and bananas, but Sophia grabbed a banana, peeled it, and after taking a bite, she asked, “Do you think my guinea pigs will like this? I doubt the snake likes fruit, but those guys, I am not sure.”

“You can try and see if they like it, I suppose.”

Mia Mills asked, with her eyes shining, “You have a snake? I always loved snakes! I used to have a python a few years ago, but she then got too big, and I donated her to a zoo! She has a big cage there, all for herself.”

“I have a pretty one in my room. We can go there if you want to see it. By the way, where is she going to sleep, father?”

With a shrug, Jack Cross answered, “Maybe in my room, and we can sleep together. I could also sleep on the couch, but I think it is not so comfortable. As long as you don’t push me out of bed! You usually move a lot during your sleep!”

“Okay. So, wash dishes. Get up, lady, and help me out!”

“I never washed a dish in my life! That is what my servants are for! Right… I am not in my house, and there are no servants around…”

Sophia slowly shook her head and said, “Go watch television then, while I take care of this. Are you going to stay here all alone tomorrow morning while my father goes to my school for that meeting?”

“I… am not sure. Maybe it would be better if I went as well? I mean, if you don’t mind…”

Without really knowing why, Mia Mills felt her heart pounding, and when Jack said she could go, she smiled and felt her cheeks becoming hot. She quickly got up, went to sit on the couch, and turned on the television, leaving Jack and Sophia wondering why she looked so nervous.