MAXIM
He held his breath when he saw her, excited in a way he rarely was.
At the same time, disbelief washed over Maxim. It was shocking to him that the universe, which normally made him work for everything, was really giving him another chance to figure out who the woman was, completely free of charge.
An unexpected but welcome boon, he thought.
Maxim had barely taken a step toward the woman when someone punched him squarely in the face.
The impact and pain sent him stumbling backward, a surprised grunt escaping his lips. It took him about three seconds to regain his balance.
Slowly, he lifted a hand to touch his lip, which was now busted. When he pulled his hand away, his fingers were smeared with blood.
As he looked up from the sight, the first thing he noticed was that the woman was no longer where he had last seen her.
She had vanished without so much as a trace again.
"Damn it."
Maxim felt a huge wave of anger, but it was also accompanied by slight amusement.
So soon after being acquitted, he was already going to kill someone.
Maxim's gaze snapped toward the unfortunate individual.
After he did this, his anger dissipated and his amusement grew, realizing his attacker was none other than Detective Nicholas Ross.
He was the man who had slapped handcuffs onto Maxim's wrists with a smug grin and was now staring at him with fury and undisguised hatred.
"I know you had your accountant killed so he couldn't testify at your trial, you son of a bitch!" Ross snarled.
The detective's anger made Maxim smile.
Detective Nicholas was referring to Maxim's former employee, Robert Lannister. This was also the same guy who had tried to sell him out to the police, completely out of the blue.
After learning this, Maxim had promptly had the bastard killed before the trial so he wouldn't testify against him in court.
Without Robert, the watertight case against Maxim had taken a big hit, hence the detective's bad mood.
Maxim, on the other hand, was very much loving this.
Perhaps because it was refreshing to be openly challenged for once.
Especially by an officer of the law.
Before Maxim could respond, a voice rang out behind him.
"Detective Ross, you laid your hands on my client. For that, you can be sure I'll be coming to file charges against you at the station the moment I leave this courthouse."
Maxim turned to find his lawyer, Livia Wilson, standing beside him.
As always, she looked immaculate in her tailored black suit. Her naturally auburn hair framed her sharp features, her green eyes were calculating, and her red-painted lips were pressed into a thin line.
"Let it go, Livia," Maxim said calmly. "Detective Ross is just having a bad day. After all, he just lost his chance at a promotion."
Livia looked surprised at him. The detective's expression darkened, clearly wondering how Maxim knew about the promotion.
Maxim continued grinning.
What could he say?
He knew everything that happened in this city.
"I'm going to get you one day, Holloway," Ross growled before turning away.
"When that happens, take better care of any potential witnesses you might have," Maxim called after him.
Livia let out a tired sigh after the detective left.
"You know, as your lawyer, you make my job much harder when you say things like that."
She reached into her handbag and offered him a tissue for the blood on his lip.
"But that's exactly why I pay you so much," Maxim replied, accepting the tissue.
As he wiped the blood away, Livia couldn't help smirking at his unapologetic response. She continued watching him, desire flickering in her eyes.
"So..." she began, her voice becoming soft. "Do you want to come over to my house tonight and... thank me for your acquittal?"
Maxim snorted at the question.
"Technically, I did most of the work, not you."
The smile faltered on Livia's face after Maxim's matter-of-fact reply. But she quickly made herself get over it, smiling at him again.
"It doesn't matter who did what, right? We'll be celebrating your freedom, regardless," she said, placing a manicured hand on his arm.
Maxim looked from her suggestive expression to where she was making contact with his person with those long nails. He immediately cursed the impulse that had led him to keep this woman as his mistress for the past three months.
He should have done the right thing—sleep with Livia once and move on.
From past experience, he knew allowing anything more resulted in moments like this. His sexual partners acted as if he owed them something when he'd made it clear from jump that any such thing was aborrent to him.
He lifted his hand and pushed Livia's away from him with more force than necessary.
"Not tonight, Counsellor," he told her, sounding very annoyed.
Livia's cheeks started staining red after this, and she let out an angry huff.
Ignoring her, Maxim just tossed the bloodstained tissue into a nearby garbage bin before walking past her like she was little more than a ghost.
He hoped that this little interaction of theirs would remind Livia about the reality of their relationship.
Aside from being his lawyer, she was one of his occasional sex partners and nothing more. Nothing would ever change that.
The thought of being in a relationship just irritated Maxim. A girlfriend always seemed more trouble than the person was worth to him. He would not do that to himself for the world.
Livia's jaw tightened as she watched Maxim leave.
As the city's best criminal lawyer, she was an ambitious woman.
And she very much wanted Maxim Holloway.
A man who was also wealthy, powerful, feared, and undeniably gorgeous.
It didn't matter that Livia knew he was a criminal beneath all the wealth and glamour.
It didn't matter that wanting him was completely unprofessional.
He was what she wanted.
And he was what she would get.
Taking a slow breath, she adjusted the court files in her hand before heading toward the exit.
Sooner or later, Maxim Holloway would come around, Livia assured herself.
No one had ever been able to resist her charms for long.
And neither would he.
---
Maxim had just stepped out of the courthouse when he spotted his big, burly bodyguard, driver, and right-hand man, Levi Rogers, waiting beside his black SUV.
Relief swept through him at the sight.
After everything that had happened today, all he wanted was to go home, collapse into bed, and forget everything existed.
He had barely taken a step toward the vehicle when he saw her.
Again.
For the third time that day.
Maxim suppressed his excitement at the sight of her this time, having learned his lesson from the first two times.
At this point, Maxim was beginning to wonder if the universe was deliberately placing this woman in his path.
And if it was...
Whether that was actually a good thing.
This time, she was sitting in the back of a taxi idling across from the courthouse.
And her hood was down.
For the first time, Maxim saw her face clearly, which was very beautiful.
He only saw her for a moment, though.
The taxi pulled away almost immediately, disappearing into traffic before he could react.
Yet Maxim remained where he was, frozen long after the vehicle vanished.
Because now he was certain about one thing: he had seen the woman before.
He knew her.
But who she was...
And when they had met...
Those details remained frustratingly elusive.
For a long moment, he stood frozen, disturbed by the entire phenomenon.
Maxim's memory had always been exceptional.
He rarely forgot a face.
So why the hell couldn't he place this one?
And why did he start feeling like he would lose his mind if he didn't figure out who she was?
He searched his brain for her, trying to bring the memory of her face to the surface again and hold on to it this time.
Nothing at first.
Suddenly—
Maxim felt something shatter inside his mind.
He staggered as a crushing wave of dizziness washed over him, threatening to bring him to his knees.
He squeezed his eyes shut as it happened, a pained groan escaping him as an avalanche of images flooded his mind.
The first thing that came to him was her name.
Ava Morgan.
Then came her face again, this time from up close.
Dark brown hair.
Brilliant green eyes.
Full, inviting lips.
High cheekbones that caught the light whenever she smiled.
Maxim's breathing became ragged as image after image of her assaulted him.
The first time he saw Ava.
Their first conversation.
Her laughing.
The adoring way she always seemed to look at him.
Moments of the two of them together came flooding into his mind with terrifying clarity.
Him and Ava.
His girlfriend.
The possessive thought echoed through his mind so naturally that it startled him.
His eyes snapped open.
Okay, what?
Where the hell was all of this coming from? Maxim wondered, his pulse hammering against his ribs.
Then the truth struck him like lightning.
Maxim realized these weren't just random images in his mind.
They were memories.
His lost memories.
The five years of his life that had been stolen from him by the accident...
...had finally returned.
His knees nearly buckled beneath the weight of the revelation.
A few feet away, Levi Rogers noticed his boss sway.
Assuming another migraine had struck, he rushed over and pulled a small bottle from his pocket.
"Sir," Levi said urgently, holding out the medication. "Your medicine."
Still overwhelmed by the memories, Maxim shoved his hand away.
The bottle slipped from Levi's fingers and fell onto the pavement, spilling its contents.
"No."
His voice was weak.
Hoarse.
But firm.
Slowly, Maxim lifted his head and stared down the road where the taxi had disappeared with his mysterious woman.
"I don't want the medicine," he whispered.
After a moment of hesitation, he spoke up again.
"I want to find Ava."