Chapter 376: The Morning After

Ellis turned fully to face Maya.

“Did you drink a lot last night?”

Maya, still groggy like she had just woken up from a hangover, couldn’t remember exactly how much she’d drunk. All she had were flashes, fragments of the night that didn’t connect. Her memory stopped at the image of a man’s bare chest. Her smile stiffened.

“I… yeah, I drank quite a bit.”

Maya gave a sheepish smile, which only made Ellis feel more suspicious. Maya had gone out with a client, drank too much, and didn’t come home until morning. The first thing Ellis thought of was where Maya had spent the night—and who had taken care of her after she got drunk.

“I don’t want to have to interrogate you when I get back tonight. You better start explaining now.”

There was a good chance Easton would show up again later. If that happened, Ellis would be too busy yelling at him to remember to question Maya. But still, this kind of questioning came from concern, not nosy curiosity. Maya hadn’t come home all night, didn’t even text her, and now she was acting cagey? Way too suspicious.

Faced with Ellis’s questions, Maya shut her eyes for a second.

“I got drunk last night and… I accidentally slept with Cameron.”

She didn’t dare look at Ellis. She even turned her head like she wanted to disappear.

Ellis’s voice jumped an octave.

“What? Did I hear that right? You slept with Cameron?”

“Yeah.” Maya cracked one eye open and peeked at Ellis.

Ellis fell silent, her mind racing. Technically speaking, they were both adults, both single. It wasn’t anyone else’s business if something happened between them. But still, she was having a hard time processing it.

“You slept with Cameron. Why do you look so guilty?”

“It’s my first time doing something like this,” Maya said with a tight smile. She’d woken up to find a man in her bed—her client, no less. Worst part was, the marks all over her body made it clear who’d initiated it. I pretty much jumped him while drunk… no wonder I panicked and ran.

“Right,” Ellis remembered Maya had never dated before. “You better stop looking so guilty and start thinking about whether you used protection. Don’t get yourself pregnant over a one-night stand!”

“No, I didn’t. I just bought Plan B. Gonna take it in a bit.” Maya had thought of that on her way back and stopped at the pharmacy to grab the pill. She’d planned to take it quietly, but Ellis had caught her before she could.

“You’re killing me. You can’t be taking that stuff all the time. Next time—” Ellis had taken Plan B twice before. She knew how rough the side effects were.

“Use protection. Don’t screw up your body just for a few minutes of fun.”

“I know.” Maya nodded like a bobblehead. “There won’t be a next time.” And if there is, it’s definitely not happening with Cameron again.

1:01 PM c · Chapter 376: The Morning After Finished

Ellis wasn’t trying to scold her, but her eyes drifted to the water dispenser in the living room and she gestured toward it.

“Go take your pill already.”

Maya gave her an OK sign and waved Ellis off to work. They were both adults now. Ellis trusted Maya to handle her own mess, so she left without another word.

But on her way to work, Cameron called.

“Ahem.” The moment Ellis answered, Cameron cleared his throat instead of speaking. She wasn’t sure if it was a real cough or just nerves, so she waited.

After a long pause, Cameron finally said, “Good morning. Sorry to bother you—can I ask you something real quick?”

“Go ahead.” Ellis already knew what this was about. It had to be about Maya.

“Did Ms. Maya make it home this morning?” Cameron had woken up alone. Maya gone without a trace. Even her clothes had disappeared from the floor.

You could’ve just called her directly.

“She didn’t answer. I remembered she mentioned living with you?”

“She’s home,” Ellis replied flatly.

“Thanks.” Cameron hung up, then sent Maya a message on WhatsApp.

Ellis raised an eyebrow as she stared at the disconnected line. So Maya had a drunken hookup with Cameron. What was Cameron thinking now?

Once she got to the office, Ellis focused on work. At lunch, she called Maya and told her Cameron had reached out. Then she asked what Maya—and whether Cameron—had said anything else.

Still hungover and foggy, Maya had called in sick and was resting at home. Without even thinking about it, she said, “I’m just going to pretend it never happened.”

She was thinking—and whether Cameron was her client. They’d slept together because of the alcohol. That wasn’t something she ever would’ve done sober. Besides, just because you sleep with someone once doesn’t mean you owe them anything.