Master of his heart (Brielle and Max)

Max nodded, his eyes lingering on her lips before he chuckled softly. "Still got a headache?" Brielle, a bit slow to catch on, looked away, feeling a tinge of embarrassment. "You should go." "Will you reach out to me?"

"Yeah."

A small smile played on Max's lips as he extended a finger. "Keep it on the down-low?"

Standing by the window, Brielle hooked her pinkie with his. "Yeah."

Max withdrew his hand, feeling as if a weight had been lifted off his chest.

Brielle stayed put, watching the car slowly drive away. It took a moment for her to snap back to reality, patting her cheeks gently. She hadn't met anyone easier to cheer up than Max.

As Patrick drove, he glanced at Max through the rearview mirror. Max's eyes had a certain glow, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Patrick sighed in relief. Had Max really been cheered up?

Patrick couldn't help but smile himself. People often said Max was just a businessman, indifferent to emotions. But Patrick always thought that was exactly why Max didn't overthink things like other men, who saw showing vulnerability as a sign of weakness.

To harvest flowers, you need to plant seeds. If you plant cacti, you'll only get thorns. In a relationship, if both people just try to conquer and control, neither will be happy. Love needs vulnerability, a desire to protect, and an eagerness to please.

of love, let alone the constraints imposed by society. But Max didn't care about any of that, so he was always the first to show

did she lean against

got into his car, looking at the strand of hair wrapped around

hair to the person next to him. "Get a DNA test done, compare

person, shrouded in shadows, took the hair respectfully

his fingertips

the window

under your watch. Nol

Keep the

and made a gesture, assuring Dustin of his

lips curved into a smile, but his eyes were ruthless.

nodded again and started

fierce look in his eyes. "Beaconsfield, quite

filled with a chill, but neither the driver nor the person

at the spot

the hair had been, it slightly. "Dummy,

years have you