Rebirth Into My Second Chance

I tossed a towel to Richard, and he casually wiped himself off, flashing a bright smile.

"Look, I'm all good, right? I always keep my promises," he said, spinning around to show he was in fine fettle. "Hungry?" I lobbed a bagel his way.

He took a few bites. "Starving. I could go for some meat. Let's grab a steak when we get home."

I couldn't help but smile. "Max, that's short for Maximilian, right?"

Richard stopped chewing and looked past me. That's when I knew Max had shown up.

Footsteps sounded behind me, and Richard bolted. "I don't know anything. I swear!"

I turned, eager for Max's explanation, but he just approached against the light, handing me a lunchbox.

"So, I need to eat well to keep up with all those surgeries, huh?" I said, trying to lighten the mood.

He just hummed in agreement. His eyes had lost their earlier warmth, becoming indifferent again. He wasn't going to explain, and I wouldn't ask. After all, if he had intended to tell me, he wouldn't have let his driver mention that Max was just the Hilton family's physician. And even if he was Maximilian, it was not like he owed me an explanation. Our relationship had always been strictly professional.

lunchbox, I realized the warm meal inside must have been flown in from Silverlake City by the Hilton family. Only someone of Maximilian's stature could pull off such a feat. Max watched me start to eat and turned to leave the

in. "Why

my head, puzzled

pressed, "He didn't

Max. "To someone as insignificant as

Richard said, biting into a piece of

him? Do you

provided the

when you were

I froze.

turned Crestview Metropolis upside down the day

like a

asked again, "Wondering why he didn't

looked up, waiting

me and said, "He said, rather than spending all his energy on rescuing you, you'd prefer