MAFIA LOVE SCANDAL

Birthday is one of the most joyful moments for children and adults alike. Usually, they receive well-wishes, gifts, and a special celebration on their special day as they grow older.

Laura Maximilian herself is accustomed to receiving surprises or grand parties from her two children. However, especially in the case of Kaivan, since he decided to live alone and immerse himself in his business life, he seemed to rarely visit or see his Mom.

So, when this man arrives today, especially bringing along a beautiful woman, Laura naturally welcomes him enthusiastically. Kaivan is indeed quite different from Kenzie’s obedient nature. He’s too stubborn, closed-off, and doesn’t like his personal life being disturbed by anyone.

“Mama, I didn’t think you’d come tonight,” Laura says after letting go of her hug.

“There’s no way I’d miss an important event like this.”

Laura then looks at Anne. She scans the woman’s appearance from head to toe and speaks softly, “Who’s this lovely lady, Kai? Don’t you want to introduce her to Mama?”

Kaivan curls the corner of his lips into a smile. In the next moment, he confidently answers his Mom’s question, “Allow me to introduce, Ma, this is Anna Maria. She’s my future wife.”

“Your future wife?” Laura is immediately taken aback. From the tone of her voice, it’s clear that she’s very surprised.

“Yes, Ma. Anne is my future wife. I’m sorry for not introducing her to our extended family before.” Still smiling, Kaivan nods. “And perhaps in the near future, we’ll be getting married.”

Anna Maria, who has no idea about the wedding plans, is clearly confused. She immediately turns towards Kaivan, blinking once to signal that she needs more explanation. To this, Kaivan just smiles broadly, then wraps his arm around her waist tightly, and says softly, “Sweetheart, weren’t you wanting to meet my parents? This is your chance to get to know them directly.”

Anne returns the smile. She makes an effort to maintain her composure and not raise suspicion. “Ah, yes.” Anne then turns to Laura, politely extending her hand for a handshake. “Nice to meet you, Aunt,” she says. “Kaivan was right; there’s nothing in this world that can match his Mom’s beauty.”

Laura blushes modestly at the praise. Besides being beautiful, she thinks Anne is adept at fitting in. “Don’t overdo it. You’re beautiful too. Kaivan seems to have a talent for choosing a future wife.” Laura’s gaze shifts to her eldest child. “Kai, it’s better if you join Kenzie; let Mama borrow your future wife for a moment to introduce her to Papa.”

Kaivan nods, allowing his mother to lead Anne around. Meanwhile, he opts to grab a glass of the available wine. In the next moment, he joins Kenzie, who’s been sitting in a corner of the party room with his wife.

“What kind of drama are you pulling off now, Kai?” Kenzie teases. Although he doesn’t directly hear what his brother is saying to their Mom, from his movements, he seems to be able to read what’s happening.

“Just doing what you guys instructed,” Kaivan responds casually. He takes a slow sip from the wine in his hand.

“What do you mean?”

“Tsk!” Kaivan clicks his tongue. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

Before Kenzie can ask for more explanation, Laura’s voice calls both of her children to come closer.

“Kai…” Laura pats the sofa beside her, signaling for him to sit next to her. “Come here, Mama and Papa want to talk seriously with you.”

Kaivan obeys, taking a seat right between Laura and Federich, his father.

“What’s up, Ma?” he asks, feigning innocence.

“Before I ask further, can you tell Mama and Papa where you and Anna Maria first met?”

Kaivan smiled. With calmness, he attempted to tell the story.

“We first met at a fashion show event. So, Anne is a professional model, Ma. After that meeting, we exchanged phone numbers. And Anne, who pursued me so intensely.” He glanced at her. “Isn’t that right, Darling?”

Anne laughed awkwardly while nodding. But who would know that deep inside, she was cursing him in frustration.

Kaivan, you jerk! Just you wait, I’ll get back at you soon.

“Yes, I admit that I fell in love at first sight. So, in the next meeting, when Kaivan was drunk and proposed to me-”

“To get married immediately,” Kaivan interrupted. “Anne agreed without hesitation.”

Kaivan glared sharply at Anne. She was close to revealing the truth. It could be a mess if Laura found out about Anne being pregnant.

“Wait a minute,” Laura interrupted. “What do you mean by drunk? Did you propose to Anne while you were drunk?”

“Not like that, Ma.” Kaivan quickly thought on his feet. A slip of the tongue could mess everything up. “Anne thought I was drunk and proposed to her out of the blue. But I was serious. Besides, if we both feel compatible and comfortable, why delay it?”

Laura nodded in understanding.

“Then, do Anne’s parents know about your intention to get married?” the woman asked curiously.

This time, Kaivan gave Anne the opportunity to answer her mother’s question. To hell with what she would say, just as long as she didn’t mention the pregnancy.

“Coincidentally, I am an orphan.” Anne began to tell the story. “My mother passed away a few years ago due to an accident. And my father works as a soldier stationed at the border. But about this marriage, he already knows. He even gave us his blessing.”

“Thank God, that’s good to hear.” Relief was evident on Laura’s face. “Aunt is also sympathetic about what happened to your late mother.”

“But are you really serious about getting married?” Federich, who had been silent until now, wanted to make sure again. “We just don’t want you to play around this time.”

It’s not without reason that the middle-aged man had been having suspicions. Ever since Kaivan ran away from an arranged marriage ceremony a few years ago, coupled with rumors that his eldest son had a habit of changing partners frequently, Federich was doubtful that Kaivan would get married soon. He just didn’t want his son to turn the sacred moment of marriage into a game.

“If I weren’t serious, there’s no way I’d be marrying her, Pa,” Kaivan retorted.

Laura cleared her throat loudly. She realized that if this conversation continued, it would likely lead to a debate between her husband and her eldest son. To avoid that, she immediately mediated.

“In that case, Mama just wants to know when roughly you plan to have the wedding?”

A grin appeared on Kaivan’s face. “If there are no obstacles, maybe next week.”

Everyone, including Anne, was taken aback by the information Kaivan had just dropped. He spoke so casually, as if there were no burdens.

“Next week?” Laura confirmed. “Are you sure? What about all the preparations? Like the venue, invitations, dresses, and other necessities?”

Kaivan nodded confidently. “Don’t worry, Ma. Everything is ready,” he joked. How could everything be ready when the idea of getting married had just been conceived a few minutes ago? “The wedding party will be held privately at my hotel. The guest list will probably consist of just close family, friends, and loved ones.”

“As for the dress, how about that?” Laura continued to question.

“For that-” Kaivan began.

“We haven’t chosen the dress at all, Aunt,” Anne interrupted. “Kaivan has been really busy lately.”

“Oh my goodness…” Laura exclaimed. “You know you want to get married, why haven’t you made time for this?”

“I have been really busy, Ma.” Kaivan defended.

Laura took a deep breath. She knew that her eldest son was undoubtedly busy with his work. But if he didn’t intentionally make time, when could he?

“How about tomorrow I accompany you both to choose the wedding dress?” she offered.

Kaivan rolled his eyes, seemingly weighing whether to accept his mother’s offer.

“Of course, Aunt.”

It was not Kaivan, but Anne who responded. She smiled meaningfully at the man who was her future husband.

“I’m sure Kaivan has some free time tomorrow for a wedding dress fitting,” she continued. “Right?”

Kaivan reluctantly nodded. “Seems like I can. My workload isn’t too heavy tomorrow.”

Laura smiled confidently, grabbing both Anne and Kaivan’s hands simultaneously. “In that case, tomorrow Mama will head straight to your hotel. After that, we’ll go together to the bridal boutique.”

Kaivan and Anne both nodded. Rather than being bombarded with more questions, it was better for them to just go along with what Laura instructed.

****

Kaivan threw the jacket he had just put on in a random direction. His hands then extended to unbutton his shirt, one button at a time, revealing his body.

Simultaneously, without knocking, Anne barged into Kaivan’s room. This, of course, surprised him quite a bit.

“Goodness, Anne! How could you barge into my room without permission?” he protested, clearly displeased.

“Kai, you owe me an explanation.”

Kaivan arched an eyebrow. “Explanation about what?” he pretended not to know. Yet, from his movements alone, he knew what Anne wanted to discuss.

“This is about the marriage and all the things you said at the birthday party.”

Kaivan sighed lazily. Trying to ignore Anne, he chose to remove his shirt, exposing his muscular chest without any covering.

“Kaivan, I’m talking to you!” Anne protested when she realized he wasn’t paying attention to her.

“I wasn’t boasting,” he said casually.

“Then why don’t you just explain where we first met-”

“Then go on to tell my parents that you’re pregnant with a child from a man who might not even be responsible?” Anne could see how Kaivan’s initially neutral face became tense. His deep voice even hinted at a touch of irritation.

“You should be thankful that I’m keeping this disgraceful secret under wraps. Not letting people think of you as some kind of promiscuous woman or something.”

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Anne cursed in her mind. This time, she was really feeling how annoying a person like Kaivan could be. “Don’t overstate it. Aren’t you doing this to protect your own reputation?”

“That’s part of it,” Kaivan admitted without hesitation. “And about the marriage, we are indeed getting married next week. Or do you want me to propose to you first? Like people usually do?”

“Proposal?”

Now, Anne found herself gaping again. Her mind kept asking, what was it that he was planning behind her back.

“If that’s what you want, I can do it now.” Kaivan seemed to take a deep breath before speaking again. “Anna Maria, will you marry me? Become the wife of Kaivan Maximilian?”

Anne grimaced. “Don’t joke around, Kai. This isn’t funny.”

“Why should I joke? Isn’t that what you want?” He took a step forward, approaching Anne with a squinted gaze full of scrutiny. “Or maybe you’re actually afraid to marry me?”

Anne stepped back, giving Kaivan a wary look right back.

“What did you say? I’m afraid?”

Kaivan laughed. “Who knows, maybe you’re afraid to marry me because you’re worried your secret will be revealed soon. Don’t forget, up until this moment, I still don’t believe that the child in your belly is my flesh and blood. I’m more inclined to believe that you appeared in my life on purpose with some hidden motive.”

Anne clenched her jaw tightly. She was ready to retort, but before she could get a chance, Kaivan started talking again.

“But, because I’m a good guy and I don’t want my name tarnished by this damn scandal, I’ve decided to marry you. And when the child is actually born, we’ll prove together who the father is.”

Taking a deep breath, Anne bravely stepped closer. She moved near and brought both her hands to gently touch Kaivan’s exposed chest as she whispered.

“I don’t care about all your accusations and your negative thoughts about me,” she said. Then a moment later, Anne nodded rhythmically. “Alright, I accept your proposal to get married. And you also have to remember one thing, don’t let it be that after we’re married, you’re the one who wants to stay with me.”

Anne lifted her face, seeing how Kaivan curled a mocking smile.

“That will never happen-”

“Because I’m not your type?” Anne guessed. As if she had memorized what he would say to her.

“Of course. You’re not my type, Anna Maria, no matter how long it takes.”

Anne grinned. Instead of stepping back or ending the conversation, she brought both her hands back to cup Kaivan’s cheeks in an affectionate manner and said, “We’ll see about that. Whether it’s you or me who ends up begging to stay in the end.”

Kaivan smiled ruefully. He kept trying to deny Anne’s words.

“Of course, I would never do something foolish like that. I’ll say it again, it will never happen!”