Mia stood opposite Anton at the dining table and breathed nervously.

She had to do this, she knew she had to.

She looked at him pitifully as he winced in pain; he had a bad headache this morning.

"The coffee will help ease the pain sir" she said as a suggestion.

"Hmm... thanks" he said as he reached out to cup of coffee in the tray.

He took a sip. "You should sit and join me for breakfast"

"I want to resign Mr Hugh" she said quickly but firmly.
Anton's hand shook in shock and the hot coffee went through his shirt to his chest.

He let out a pain groan through clenched teeth as he held his shirt forward quickly and stood up.

"I'm sorry" Mia said as she held the cloth forward from touching his chest and blew air from her mouth rapidly on him.
Anton didn't know how she got around the table so quickly but he knew that at the moment she was holding his shirt and blowing anxious air from her mouth, with care on him.

He would have been dragged into this but her sentence hung in his mind.

He held her two hands that were on him and looked at her quizzically.

"What did you say?"

"I-I said I'm sorry" she said unsure and still trying to not show how nervous she was or how he affected her.

"No, the one before that"

"I said I want to resign Mr Hugh" she looked down as she spoke because she couldn't bear his gaze; it felt like it was piercing her soul and there was also a hint of betrayal in them.

She didn't know why she was feeling guilty but she knew she was. He had been so good to her and it felt like she was throwing it all away.

"Did I do something?" He asked unsure and confused.
This was the last thing he thought would happen. He thought she had warmed up to him by being so flexible last night only to hear this in the morning.

*****     *****     *****

===FLASHBACK===

"Go freshen up and meet me inside when you're done" Anton told Mia as they stepped out of the car.

"Okay sir" she said with a nod.

As she entered the house, she heard the sound of utensils and knew he was in the kitchen.

She opened the kitchen door and his eyes locked with hers.

"What are you doing here?" He asked startled and embarrassed.
He looked like a mess right now being covered in flour.

"You told me to freshen up and come"

"Oh right, but that was quick"

He stood still like he'd been caught stealing meat from the pot red-handed, but in his case, he was trying to dispose off his failed cake.

"Are you trying to dispose of a cake?"

"No no...okay yes I am. I tried making it myself so it might be a special birthday cake but this is my first time baking so this happened. I mean baking is harder than cooking, I couldn't make it despite the help of Youtube"

Mia became unsettled and maybe uncomfortable. It was things like this that he did that made her not to understand her emotions anymore; she had to stop this.

"Why would you go through the stress of making a cake for me Mr Hugh?"

"I have a lot of reasons. One, you saved my life today. Second, you saved my life days back. Third, you won't accept money even if I offered, remember how you blatantly refused it last time... And the list goes on"

"I'll like to hear the rest of the list"

"You might, someday, but for now I need to trash this and order a cake to celebrate your birthday"

"You don't need to order one, I can make it"

"No no no, you can't get stressed on your special day"

"I insist sir"

"Okay fine but I'm going to be help you with it"

She shrugged in response.
Mia was overwhelmed by guilt at the moment, she felt guilty about decieving him. But technically, it wasn't her fault, he'd found out on his own not like she told him but she still felt guilty.

"So tell me, which do you like the most; cooking or baking?" Anton said to spring up a conversation.

"Baking"

"Why? If I may ask"

She took a deep breath, "Well I think it's because my mom taught me" her mind flashed back to eight years old her running around with a chunk of dough in her little hands.

"Mia stop, please bring it back" her mother yelled as she chased her to the sitting room.

"You have to catch me to get it" she looked back at her mother and stuck her tongue out only to hit the cushion on turning back. She lost her balance and fell on the floor, the dough also hitting the floor.

Her mom stood over her with a deep frown.

"I'm sorry" Mia said with a cute bribery smile but her mother wasn't buying it this time.

"Don't think I'm falling for that Mia, and be rest assured that I'm making yours with that dough so pick it up and follow me"

"Mom please" she begged as she ran after her to the kitchen with the floor dough in her hands.

"I promise not to do it again"

"You promised last time as well"

"But I mean it now" she pouted cutely.

"I don't and won't believe you" her mom said as she kneaded the dough.

"Please mom"

"The only thing I can do for you now is to give you some flour, but you'll knead it yourself"

"But I have little hands" she said raising her hands up as an evidence.

"Didn't you know that when you took the dough and made me run after you"

"Forgiveness mother, forgiveness. That's what the pastor says"

Next heard was her mom's laughter as she kneaded the dough with a lot of effort.

"You're not doing it right baby" her mother said teasingly. Young Mia frowned and her mother laughed harder.

Mia's eyes glistened with tears as she recalled this moment.

"Is something wrong?" Anton asked seeing her teary eyes.

She quickly turned aside. Heaven knows that she had completely forgotten about his presence.

"No, nothing's wrong"

Anton knew she wouldn't say anything even if he persisted. Sighing, he let it go.

Mia resolved to be more vigorous in getting to the truth of her parents murder. She looked at Anton with his flour tattered body; funny that he was supposed to be a CEO, she desperately wished that it wasn't him. Please, it shouldn't.

Anton brought the cake to the dining table and Mia followed with a bottle of wine.

Anton went to take a quick shower and Mia left to wash up in her quarters.

She collected the sedative from her jacket's pocket after washing up and left her quarters.
Anton had called his CSO beforehand and ordered that the cameras focusing on the dining room and the kitchen be turned off.

As she entered the dining room, she saw Anton coming down the stairs on a phone call.

"Okay thank you, I really appreciate" he said as he got down the stairs and hung up.

Mia stood beside the table looking at Anton's skeptical expression as he looked at her.

"The police called" he started.

...