"You were saying?" Zayn Bass gently folded his hand across his body, as he eyed the girl he had already concluded was a spoiled brat.
However, on even closer inspection, he realized she looked very familiar.
Dream cleared her throat, as she pulled herself out of the speechless daze that had overcame her on seeing the pretty boy.
"This is why pretty boys are no good," she scoffed in her heart.
"Look here, Mr. I don't have time to exchange words with novices like you. You've taken off the headlights of my car with your very careless driving. I'm sure if I do a really big inspection, I'd see some other bruises too. But like I said, I don't have the time to remain here with you. So you're going to give me your card, and when I need to repair my car, you'll pay for it," she said, both hands going sternly to her waist.
A deep dry chuckle rumbled through his throat, as he gave her another once-over.
Taken aback, whilst also being appalled by his outlandish reaction to her perfectly reasonable request, she took one more step forward, so she could face him even more closely.
Her heart began to thump a little, when she saw his eyes widen slightly at the nerve she had to invade his personal space.
"Are you a mad woman?" He asked in that deep, velvety, seductive voice of his that was practically eargasm.
Dream was fighting to remain the catty woman she knew herself to be, but every time he opened his mouth, she lost a little fight in her.
"Call me whatever you want, but I want your card." She stretched out her hand to him.
Something about the way she said it suddenly made him realize where he knew her from.
Internally, he chuckled a little, but kept his composure outwardly.
"You were not looking. I honked, but you still carelessly didn't brake on time. This is not my fault, young lady," he said in a condescending tone.
She looked at him with bulged eyes. "Young lady?" She snickered. "I don't even think you're older than me. And I just told you I don't have the time for this meaningless exchange. Give me your card!"
"I'm sorry, I just can't do that when I wasn't in the wrong. But hey, maybe next time it is better if you drive a car you can easily repair when it gets damaged, instead of looking for hands out."
Dreams' mouth dropped open, as the man turned to return to his car.
In a swift second, her reflex completely took over, and she yanked his driver's seat open, and dragged the keys from its ignition.
"Hey!" Zayn called in alarm when he saw what she had just done.
She turned right around, marched into her car, and shut the door.
Tossing his car key to the passengers, she moved to start her own car.
The first kickstart did nothing, and so did the next.
At this point, Zayn had arrived beside her car.
He lifted his hand to knock on her window, when he noticed her car refused to start.
And so he smiled to himself, turned around, and went inside his own car.
The moment he sat down, the sky rumbled violently.
"Oh shit!" Dream cursed, desperately trying to start her car.
"Please don't do this to me. I have to get to the airport."
She tried over and over again , but the car simply refused to start.
The first splatter of rain that hit her car, had her stomach jumping to her mouth.
"God, I'm dead!" She thought dramatically.
Her imagination conjured her siblings' reaction when they realized not only had she missed their birthday, she had also not given them their dream gifts.
None of that was an option she was willing to explore.
Hurriedly, she grabbed the stranger's key, her purse, and her phone.
Swallowing her pride, and the impending embarrassment that was sure to follow, she locked her car, and ran to his, just as it really started to pour heavily.
She knocked on his door, but he didn't open immediately.
Letting out a long hiss, she opened the door herself, and went into the passenger's seat.
At that point, her clothes were already wet.
"What are you doing in my car after you kidnapped my keys?" He asked, throwing her predicament in her face.
"Look here, Mr novice. I have to get to the airport so I can collect the gifts I ordered for my siblings' birthday tonight. If I don't there on time, everything's fucked. So why don't you forget everything that has happened and drive me to the airport? I won't even ask you to repair my car anymore."
"Still looking for handouts I see," he said, and her fist tightened.
Yet, she knew she had to swallow the stinging retort that had formed in her tongue.
"I will pay you for your services. I'm not looking for handouts. I actually have money. I'm Dream Atticus okay? Even though you don't know my name, my surname should ring a bell," she said.
Zayn smiled inwardly. He had figured she was the crazy woman that came to his company earlier in the day.
Everything Nathaniel told him about her was pretty accurate, and summed into one word– crazy.
"I can't drive to the airport. The highway is blocked. And the other routes would practically be impossible to follow through in this sudden rain."
Dream sighed, and closed her eyes for a brief moment.
He used that opportunity to really look at her, and as he looked, her beauty stole his breath away.
"You have a girlfriend, Zayn," he thought in his head, and then his grandfather's dying words followed.
"Never let a woman consume your mind. They're never any good. A woman destroyed your father's life, don't let the same happen to you."
Funny how the woman that ruined father's life is her mother.
She opened her eyes and turned to him. "Well I'm screwed."
She said those words in such a defeated tone, he felt his heart stir a little towards the direction of helping her.
Taking out her phone, she decided to call the delivery guy to negotiate paying him double if he could somehow find his way to her parents mansion.
"Mario Rivera." He saw the name on her screen before she brought the phone to her ears.
The call didn't go through, and on closer inspection, she realized there was no service..
"Fuck my fucking life!" She cursed fouly, further amusing Zayn.
"Put on your seatbelt, and hand over my keys," he said.
"What? Are we leaving for the airport?!" She asked as her eyes lit up.
"I told you that can't happen. My keys."
She sighed defeatedly, and released the keys to him.
"Just take me to a place where I can get a taxi then. I have some cash with me," she said.
He ignored her, and started the car.
Dream was too troubled, as she surrendered herself to her thoughts.
She thought of every single way she could come out of this mess without the promise of doom.
All the stress of coming out of her last day of business school, going straight to Bass Holdings, returning to the mansion and then stepping out again without any breaks in-between, finally caught up with her.
She struggled to keep her eyes open, especially being in a car with a stranger, and with all the trouble that loomed.
Unfortunately, her body just couldn't stay awake.
She fell asleep with her head turned to the side that directly faced Zayn.
Zayn's phone began to ring, which made him realize he had gotten to an area with service.
He was opening his dashboard with one hand to pull out the phone, when he noticed how quiet the car had gotten.
His head turned briefly to find the cause, beautifully asleep.
"Jesus Christ!" He muttered when her beauty hit him again, and quickly pulled his eyes away.
"Hello," he answered, after grabbing his phone.
"Zayn, about–"
"Good Nate, it's you. I need you to find your way to the airport. If you need a chopper, use one from the office. I think we have a hangar space at the airport. Find a man called Mario Rivera, and tell him you're from Dream Atticus. Collect whatever he gives you, and bring it to my house."
"Dream Att– what the fuck are you doing with—"
Zayn ended the call, and released the breath he was holding.
His gaze went to Dream again, and as his heart pounded thunderously, he perceived trouble ahead.