Chapter 519: Speaking Terms

It had been weeks since Cylus kicked Olivia out, and she still had not even called. He knew from a source that she had gotten her driver's license and had bought herself a car. She and Willow lived in a two-bedroom apartment in a decent neighborhood, and while his cousin was no longer employed with Rouge, she kept her work contracts, which Cylus had only just realized were in her name and not the company's.

Cylus guessed that Mina was funding the women, because before he knew what was happening, Olivia had an office space where she was marketing herself as a private event planner. They had even somehow managed to get the Chancellor of Wayvair University to vouch for Olivia as 'professional and well organized.'

The rift between Cylus and Olivia had not just put a toll on him, but it had also put a burden on his friendships and family. Cylus' father felt as though he had failed his dead sister by not raising Olivia properly, while both Oric and Connor were upset that he had taken things far enough to cast the woman out of the family.

Several times since throwing her out, Cylus had gone to see his cousin, only to be told that she was unavailable, not home or working. He did not want to barge in on her, because he wanted to mend things civilly, but the more that time passed, the less likely that seemed. He was also troubled by Vanya, who had somehow gotten it into her mind that pitting him against his relation was her ticket back into his life, and while he indulged her in bed, he made sure she knew he had no plans to salvage their failed relationship.

Cylus found himself drinking more, working harder, and overall doing his best to ignore the women, who he had hurt with his words. He had hoped for the sake of family they would all drift back together as if nothing happened, but when Mina told him that he would regret what he had said and done, she meant it. He was now an outsider; watching his little cousin, who he loved dearly, grow into a successful young woman with the nurture and support of people who were little more than strangers.

----

Ian was glued to the entertainment news. Mina's information had been removed from the Rouge Entertainment website, which apparently meant she had been dropped or she quit. Knowing the woman, she had probably quit to prove a point, but Ian was ignorant as to which point she was trying to make. While he and Mina did not see one another, they often had to exchange messages about the nonprofit Mina was helping to organize and run, so Ian used their business arrangement as an excuse to pry where media outlets were in the dark.

[No more Rouge?]

[It's for the best.] Mina responded.

[Anything you need?] There was a long pause before the woman replied.

[It would be nice if I could collect on a debt that I am owed.] Ian chuckled at his phone. He knew Mina was referring to the money he promised her. He had almost all of it together, and so far, he had not raised any flags.

"Who are you texting?" Zane, who was sitting on the couch in Ian's office, questioned.

"Mina." Zane's brow raised.

"You two are on talking terms?" Ian shook his head. "Then what am I missing?"

----

Mina waited for Carson in the recording studio, the man was never late, so she knew something had to have been keeping him. When he finally arrived, he did so with a little girl, no more than four years old, in his arms. The child was adorable, and Mina found herself smiling despite being stressed about the money that was slipping through her fingers, with no reliable investments she could make to earn it back.

"Sorry, my sitter called out sick, and I couldn't find a trustworthy replacement." Mina found herself wondering why Carson would need a babysitter, but he answered for her. "Bailey lives with me full time." He didn't say much else, but Mina could tell from the man's downcast expression that the child's mother was not a part of her life.

"It's fine. I love children," Mina admitted. She squatted down to eye level with the child, who like most other children came to inspect her eyes. "Let's make it a light day," Mina said. She was speaking to Carson, but she was still allowing his daughter to pull open her eyelids.

"Sorry, other than her sitters, you're probably the first woman she has met." Mina nodded. She had already guessed as much based on the little girl's attire alone.

"Are you daddy's girlfriend?" Bailey asked, and Carson rushed the child and covered her mouth.

"I already told you; Miss Mina is only helping daddy write a song."

"But-"

"No buts, apologize." Bailey kept her head down and apologized for asking a 'rude' question. Mina patted the child's head.

"You can make it up to me by drawing me a picture." The little girl's eyes lit up, and she snatched her bag away from her father.

"How did you know I had crayons with me?"

"Lucky guess," Mina quipped.

By the end of the session Bailey was fast asleep in Mina's arms, and Carson was only just becoming happy with the arrangement of the song they had written. He was a musical perfectionist and while Mina could understand where he was coming from when he spoke, she was not as passionate. She allowed the man to do as he pleased while she took care of his daughter.

However, with the child deep in slumber, the man snapped out of work mode and focused on his child. As always, he offered to drive her home, and considering the time Mina did not protest. She was exhausted by the time the car rolled up to her apartment complex, and even more so when she saw who was waiting for her. She didn't even wait for the man's guard to approach, she just went straight to the car and climbed in.

"What?" Mina said. Her eyes were closed as she leaned heavily against the seat. Cameron had come to bully her a bit, but he could tell she was tired, and he knew from those he had positioned around her that she was working on multiple projects and was rarely home. He suddenly felt like he needed to give her advice that he hoped would save her before it was too late.

"You cannot become everyone's savior. I've heard about you trading your safety for that of others, and even what happened when you and Lisa were taken hostage. If you don't rest, you are going to burn out." Mina chuckled.

"By that logic I should be dead by now." The man frowned, fully aware that Mina's work history went back to as young as ten years of age. She had explained over dinner that being a tutor was her first 'job,' and some older students would pay her two dollars to do their homework. He wondered how exhausted the woman must have felt back then, and a part of him wondered who she could have become if she were born into wealth.

"Mina, you are not a young girl anymore. You are getting older, and I think you should start seriously looking to settle down."

"With you?"

"With whomever you choose." Mina opened her eyes and looked at the man, not like an enemy, but as a fellow human.

"I'm working on it," she said, leaning back and closing her eyes in a way that Cam could see meant she was struggling to stay awake.

"I'll walk you to your apartment, but next time; have whoever it is that dropped you off do the right thing." Mina answered the man without really thinking.

"His daughter was asleep in the car. I didn't want him to wake her."