Chapter 267

Madison

When we arrived at my apartment building, Alexander insisted on carrying my mother’s bags despite her protests.

“I’ve been carrying my own luggage since before you were born, young man,” she argued.

“Which is precisely why you should allow me the courtesy now,” he countered smoothly.

She relented with a smile. “Well, when you put it that way.”

The elevator ride to my floor was mercifully brief. As I unlocked my apartment door, I suddenly saw my modest home through Alexander’s eyes: the mismatched furniture, the stack of books by the couch, and the small kitchen with its outdated appliances. It was a far cry from his penthouse.

But if Alexander noticed the difference, he didn’t show it. He set my mother’s bags down in the living room and glanced around with interest.

“Nice place,” he said, and surprisingly, it didn’t sound condescending.

“It’s small but comfortable,” my mother replied.

I glanced around our modest ap