TEST DRIVE: A Night of Forbidden Desire

“Last night … it didn’t mean anything, did it, Max?”

Vonda’s voice echoed in Max’s mind as he opened the door to the room and saw Vonda’s face. Max’s gaze immediately focused on one spot on Vonda’s face: her lips, painted in pinkish-red lipstick.

Lips that had yielded to his kisses a few nights ago. Lips that had responded gently to his kisses. Lips that had ignited his fantasies in an instant. But unfortunately, those fantasies had evaporated in an instant because of Vonda’s words.

“Last night … it didn’t mean anything, did it, Max?”

Damn it!

Max really wanted to erase Vonda’s voice from his mind. But he could not. Vonda’s voice and words were strongly imprinted in his memory, as if she was trying to make Max realize something.

Vonda didn’t see our relationship as more than it should be.

She honestly crushed Max’s ego. Considering that she had made that clear after they had spent that passionate night together. What else could the guy expect?

But maybe it was different this time. Judging by Vonda’s implied invitation and the way she had welcomed that kiss, Max speculated. Maybe Vonda felt the same comfort he had felt lately.

Still just maybe. What if it was the opposite? Max might lose the chance to stay with Vonda if she chose to leave. The feeling that Max had violated his own wish. Just helping, right?

“Um, Max? Are you okay?”

Max blinked twice, realizing that he had been silent like a fool in the middle of the room all this time. Even when Vonda had approached him, he had not noticed her presence. He was completely lost in his own thoughts.

“Oh, that…”

Before Max could give an answer that would not embarrass him even more, Vonda placed her hand on his forehead. She furrowed her brow, as if she wanted to feel his body temperature.

“You don’t have a fever.”

Max took Vonda’s hand and lowered it. “I don’t have a fever. I’m fine.”

“You’ve been so quiet since before. Like you’re lost or something.”

Lost?

“I thought you were sick,” Vonda continued with a mischievous smile. “Don’t get sick now. We have another meeting this afternoon.”

Vonda’s chuckle eased Max’s anxiety. It made him feel peaceful again, if only for a moment.

That afternoon, after the departmental meeting had ended, Max felt the anxiety in his chest rise again. However, this turmoil felt different than the previous one. It was like a volcano ready to erupt.

It all started when the afternoon meeting ended. Max, too excited that all the tower issues had finally been resolved-the final report, the financial statements, and the team evaluation-thought he had left his phone in the meeting room while he and Vonda were walking back to his office.

“It’s okay. Let me get it.”

That’s what Vonda said. Finally, Max accepted the stack of documents Vonda handed him as she turned back toward the meeting room.

At first, Max wanted to go straight to his office, but he changed his mind. With a strange feeling, he decided to wait for Vonda.

“What’s taking so long?”

Just as the surprised look slipped off his tongue, Max felt a vibration in his jacket pocket. His eyes widened and he slapped his forehead.

“Oh, you idiot! How could I keep that in my pocket? It’s usually in my pants pocket, right?” Max muttered to himself. “Ah! Vonda must be taking so long because she’s looking everywhere for my phone. Oh my God! She’s going to be so mad.”

Not wanting to see Vonda’s anger after feeling he had been played, Max made a decision. He decided to go after her.

Max’s steps were hurried. He was almost running down the hall. He turned a corner and from a distance he noticed something else strange. Vonda was standing at the door. Her hand was on the doorknob, but strangely, she was not opening it all the way.

Ignoring the oddity, Max approached Vonda. He stood right behind her and was about to call out to her when something stopped him.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“Hahaha! I told you. You didn’t believe me, did you? I heard her talking to Mrs. Roberts in the parking lot. They’re dating.”

“So, what, Andrew? Are you jealous?”

“Huh?! Jealous? Anyone could tell she’s still bitter about breaking up with me. Trust me! With Mr. Hernandez, it’s just a rebound. Yeah, it seems like Vonda’s getting smarter about finding rich people, right?”

“A rebound like Mr. Hernandez? You’re crazy, Andrew. If I were Miss Scott, he wouldn’t be just a rebound anymore. And you? You’ve really gone far.”

“Damn! But you don’t know how Vonda begged me to get back together with her, do you?”

“Hahaha!”

Laughter echoed around the meeting room. It echoed so loudly that its vibrations reached Vonda’s hand gripping the doorknob.

“Vonda.”

Vonda instantly stiffened. She raised her face to find Max standing right next to her.

Vonda’s face went pale and her lips trembled. They trembled so much that she could not pronounce the guy’s name as strongly as she usually did.

“M-Max.”

Without saying a word, Max took control of the door and pushed it open roughly.

Brak!

While Vonda froze, a sound of readiness and surprise echoed through the meeting room. More than that, everyone in the room stared wide-eyed in disbelief when they saw who had just entered.

“Mr. Hernandez.”

Everyone in the room, who had initially been relaxed-some sitting on the table, some turning chairs, and some sitting in the department head’s special chair-suddenly stood up with tense expressions. Among them, Andrew’s face was the tensest, which was not surprising considering the sharp look Max was giving him.

“Could you repeat everything you said about Miss Scott, Andrew?”

Not only Andrew, but also the other employees turned pale. None of them dared to move from their seats.

“Do you know something? The one who answered your messages a few months ago was not her, but me. If you want to gossip in this office, go ahead. There’s no rule against me and Vonda dating. Besides, I’m relieved that you know about my relationship with her. That means you won’t be bothering my girlfriend with your car payments anymore, right?”

Max looked around at each of the employees, then continued, pointing at Andrew.

“This guy is still harassing my girlfriend to pay off his car loan. You want to gossip, right? Spread that gossip. I want to see if he has the decency to quit without a warning letter from HR.”

Andrew swallowed nervously. He looked scared, trembling even more this time.

“S-Sir.”

“Remember one more thing,” Max continued. “This is the way girls should be. They should choose their mates wisely. You heard what your friend said, right? Compared to me, you’re definitely not even close. So don’t think I’m just an escape. Our levels are different.”

Without giving Andrew a chance to defend himself-which he didn’t seem to have anything to say anyway-Max left the room immediately. He walked over to Vonda and took her hand, leading her away.

*

“I just realized that I’ve been feeling weird around some of the staff for the past few days. Turns out they’ve been talking about me. Oh my God, Max. I feel so stupid.”

Max remained silent, choosing to fan Vonda with a magazine rather than engage in her chatter. He knew Vonda did not need any inspirational words right now. What she needed right now was to vent her feelings.

“What’s even sillier is how did I end up dating a guy like that?”

Max continued fanning Vonda.

“Even compared to my own stupidity, I have to admit something. You’re really smart, Max.”

Well, this time Max’s fan stopped.

“What do you mean?”

Vonda, who had been massaging her temples all along, suddenly straightened up. She turned and looked at Max, who was sitting next to her.

“Our levels are different,” Vonda rolled her eyes. “While you make me look stupid, you make yourself look smarter.”

Max burst out laughing at Vonda’s words. He did not feel the need to argue. Moreover, upon reflection, Max’s statement in the meeting room gave the impression of his superiority.

“When it comes to levels and all that stuff, I’m just curious about one thing.”

Vonda looked frustrated. “Oh, please. Don’t ask me why I went out with him in the first place. My circle of friends is limited and it just happened.”

“No, no, no.”

Unexpectedly, Max shook his head.

“I just want to know why you didn’t report Andrew’s actions to HR? I think what he did to…” Max furrowed his brow. “Who did you say was playing horsey with him in the office?”

Vonda replied briefly. “Livy.”

“Ah, I see,” Max nodded. “I mean, why didn’t you report this to HR? I don’t think actions like that should be tolerated.”

“Well, Sarah already told me to report it. The problem is that there’s no CCTV in the right position to catch them entering the empty room. If I report it based on what I saw, they’ll just think I’m making excuses to get rid of Andrew because I’m bitter about the breakup.”

Max understood Vonda’s point. He nodded in agreement and rubbed his chin.

“But Max…”

Vonda smiled sincerely, attracting Max’s attention like a magnet.

“Thank you for what you did earlier,” Vonda sighed. “I may speak my mind, but I’ve never been good at confronting people who talk behind my back.”

“Well, Andrew should have said it to your face, shouldn’t he?”

Vonda’s head lifted as she laughed spontaneously. “I can imagine how your mother’s shoes got stuck on his head.”

Max just smiled broadly in response to Vonda’s words, allowing her to laugh as much as she wanted. When Vonda finally stopped laughing, Max said, “Treat me.”

Vonda blinked. “Huh?”

“I need to know how sincere your thanks were, Von,” Max grinned. “I checked earlier, there’s a new movie on.”

Vonda gave him a teasing look. “A horror movie?”

“No, a romantic comedy.”

“Hahaha! You’ve got to be kidding me.”

*

And so, they spent the rest of the day. Enjoying a supposed horror movie, even though they couldn’t stop laughing throughout the entire movie, which made their bodies tired by the end-horror comedy movie.

After laughing endlessly, Vonda dragged Max to a restaurant in the mall. It was time for dinner, and they enjoyed a delicious meal in a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere.

During dinner, various conversations flowed smoothly, like water flowing steadily to its destination. They were interspersed with laughter and playful teasing, including the mischievous acts of stealing food from each other’s plates. Eventually, Max had to give in and his large shrimp ended up in Vonda’s mouth.

Max sighed and shook his head. “It’s proven. You really didn’t mean it when you thanked me earlier.”

Without denying the accusation, Vonda just laughed. After all, it was a fair trade for the piece of chicken she had snatched from Max earlier.

It was indeed a delicious dinner. They were satisfied not only with the delicious food, but also with the joyful feeling it brought. Unconsciously, they spent a lot of time there.

So, it wasn’t surprising that the waiter sighed with relief when Vonda and Max left the restaurant. It was about ten minutes to ten in the evening.

“Ah!”

Vonda sighed and rested her head on the passenger seat. She looked tired, but happy. She turned to Max, who showed no signs of starting the car.

“I think it’s best if we go together with your car while mine stays at the office,” Vonda said. “I don’t feel like I have the energy to drive right now. Although it’s clear that I ate a lot earlier.”

Max smiled. “Besides, it would be weird if we wanted to hang out but ended up going separately.”

“True,” Vonda agreed.

Getting comfortable in her seat, Vonda looked at Max. He seemed a little distracted, not wearing his seat belt and lost in thought.

Max let out a long sigh, trying to calm himself as his blood rushed and his chest pounded.

“Max?”

Max’s jaw moved up and down. His hand reached out and took Vonda’s hand, holding it tightly.

He said, “Come home with me tonight, Von.”

*