Master of his heart

Chapter 413
Alivia’s face still held a gentle warmth as she spoke, “We've known each other for
so many years, and it’s the first time I've heard you talk about someone special.
She must be quite the catch. As a friend, I'm really happy for you. Are you
sticking around for dinner tonight? If you're eager to be with her, maybe you
should head over, especially with how outrageous the media has been today. I
worry it might give her the wrong idea.”
It was a tactical retreat. Alivia was playing her cards right by suggesting Max
should go to Brielle and mentioning the media's exaggerated stories, implying
that the media's fabrications. had nothing to do with her.
Having known Max for years, Alivia was aware that aside from his work, he
hardly paid attention to anything else, let alone spontaneously checking
someone’s social media. That's why she felt confident enough to post those
ambiguous messages on her own account, only to delete them shortly after
posting. Even if someone took screenshots, she could claim it was malicious
intent, and she'd still manage to come out squeaky clean.
In Alivia’s eyes, Max's affection for Brielle was simply due to men’s natural
inclination to protect the vulnerable. Yes, it was because Brielle was less
capable, less dazzling than Alivia was, that Max was momentarily beguiled by
her.
Men didn’t fancy women with too much guile; they felt threatened and found them
hard to handle. But if she positioned herself as a humble admirer, whose every
action sprang from her affection for him, what reason would Max have to be
harsh with her?
If she could soften his heart just once, she knew it would gradually lead to a bond
of
compassion, tipping the scales of love in her favor.
Even now, Alivia refused to believe that Max could truly love Brielle. She saw
Brielle’s emergence as a minor disturbance; as long as Alivia’s relationship with
Max could withstand this trial, she had nothing to fear from any future storms.
In short, Brielle was nothing more than a spice in Alivia’s emotional recipe, not
worth fretting over, and certainly not worth a full-scale war.
Still she had no intention of making life easy for her either.
Ultimately, Max set down his phone. “I'll stay. Spend time with Mom.” He stood by
the window. his voice indifferent.
A hint of amusement flickered in Alivia’s eyes as her lips curled into a smile. “Aunt
Martha will. be thrilled. I'll let the chef know to get started.”
Max nodded, and it wasn't until he had left that he raised his hand to massage
his temples.
Alivia’s admiration was too evident, though she tried hard to disguise it. Max was
no fool and could see right through it. He had rejected her once, twice, countless
times, and had made his position crystal clear. But Alivia was cunning. Her
admiration was open and seemingly without the intent to disturb him. If he
couldn't tolerate even this, pushing her completely out of sight, it
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Chapter 413
would border on ingratitude, given how attentive Alivia had been to Martha over
the years.
After all, she had said it herself; she was just a friend of many years. From Max's
perspective, there seemed to be no fault to pick. But he still worried about Brielle
getting the wrong idea. He never paid any mind to gossip, but he’s not sure about
Brielle.
So, he picked up the phone and stepped onto the balcony to call her.
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Brielle was bagging up trash in the
bathroom at that moment. erent
tossed {hePrgaroy st into the
Sn
on {Hat morning and hadn't thought
about it since. Max could show up at
i , 4
any time: she couldn't let him see
that. Visit bignovels.com to read
the latest chapter of this novel
Startled by Max's incoming call, she felt her heart clench and her grip loosening,
dropping the trash to the floor. “Max?”
Just hearing her voice made Max feel a soft pang in his chest. “Have
“About to.”
“Did you make something yourself?”
As Brielle picked up the scattered trash, she replied, “Yeah.”
U had dinner yet?”
Distracted, she didn’t notice the pregnancy test that had fallen under the sink
cabinet. She hastily tied up the trash bag, feeling a bit like a thief.
“If you don't feel like cooking, I can have Patrick send over a chef.”
“No need. I've not been that hungry lately.”
Hearing her lack of appetite only made Max's smile grow. Was it jealousy over
the medial reports?
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He looked out at the twilight sky, his
. “oy P
expression tender. Erigle: dent ii
. : ) . :
belique he rk fhéyre all talking
)
nonsense. I've never thought of
: Em Tb os
marrying Alivia.” Visit
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chapter of this novel
What he really wanted to say was, “I have you now, so I've never thought of
marrying Alivia.”
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In his twenty-something years, Max
had never spoken such words to a :
woman, "highopenoe secfet
she of Embarrassment. It was as if
he was breaking himself apart to be
reassembled into a completely
unfamiliar version of himself. Visit
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chapter of this novel