Chapter 677 The Deal
Max scoffed and tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Seeing that he was about to lose his patience, Nadine quickly said. “I’ll help you–even if I have to go against my dad.”
Max’s half–closed eyes opened again, a little spark of interest showing. “And why should I trust you? If Henry ends up on top, you’re his daughter. Enjoying fancy things and a rich life would be easy for you. I don’t believe you’d be stupid enough to throw away a life full of crazy wealth just to get back at Tess. You know even better than I do just how powerful the Larsons are across all of Crorus. Once you be their heiress, even Finn, the guy you could never reach before, would basically be under your foot
He lifted his eyebrow at her, his eyes filled with a clear hint of temptation.
But Nadine didn’t react at all. Not even a blink. It was as if none of his words touched her.
Max was a little surprised.
“Why not? If a life that good and a future that bright were offered to me, of course I’d grab it.
Nadineughed, but the sound was sharp and mocking.
Max caught the hidden meaning. “What are you saying?”
“Henry is nning to run away overseas with Shannon and that illegitimate son. They were never nning to take me with them.”
Nadineughed again, but her eyes sparkled with tiny, painful specks of light. She looked like someone standing right at the edge of despair.
Max froze for a moment.
No wonder.
No wonder she <i>came </i><i>here </i><i>like </i><i>she’d </i><i>thrown </i><i>everything </i><i>away </i>with <i>nothing </i><i>left </i><i>to </i><i>lose</i><i>. </i><i>So </i><i>that </i><i>was </i><i>it</i>.
He thought using Tess himself had been cruel, but Henry was even more selfish.
For the first time, he even looked at Nadine with a bit of sympathy.
“So what do you want to do?” he asked.
Nadine exined, “If Henry seeds, I’ll use whatever trust he still has in me and give you everything the Larsons own. And if Tess wins? Same thing.”
Nadine’s eyes burned with fierce determination. “No matter what, I’ll find a way to get you what you want. I just need your help.
Herst words came out through clenched teeth, like she had stuffed all her anger into them.
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Chapter 677 The Deal
Max watched her. It was clear that when it came to Tess, she didn’t have a <b>clear </b><b>n </b><b>yet</b><b>. </b>
But when you use someone, what really matters is how far they’re willing to go, right?
“Fine. But I need to know what you’re nning.” Max finally said.
Nadine pressed her lips together. “When Tess asked for Nichs back then, you kept his wife. Like <b>you </b>said, Tess won’t leave her behind. I just need to wait for the right moment. Then you can use the excuse <b>of </b>giving her back to draw Tess out. I’ll give you the full n once I’ve thought it through.”
Max frowned, staring at her. After a long pause, he gave a cold, chilling smile.
“Deal. Nadine, I didn’t expect things to be this bad for you. And don’t worry. If you can do what you say, I won’t treat you unfairly.”
She said nothing. She turned and walked away quietly, disappearing into the darkness.
Nadine didn’t even know what kind of courage she had walked in with, or what kind of emptiness she carried out. She only knew that when she reached the empty street and felt the cold wind brush her ankles again and again, her heart felt frozen and heavy.
Before today, she had never thought that Henry would try to abandon her, too.
She didn’t call a taxi. She just walked quietly, without direction.
Yesterday’s scene–Henry forcing her to apologize to Tess–was still fresh in her mind.
A bitter, mocking smile slowly spread across her lips. Then she lowered her head and let out augh.
She absentmindedly wiped at the corner of her eye and found it wet with tears.
All her life, even if the world treated her as an adopted child, within the Embers she had always been above Tess. So when Max said she’d be spoiled, he wasn’t wrong.
She just never imagined that being Henry’s favorite would turn out to mean nothing. She was just like Tess, a piece of sand he could throw away whenever he wanted.
Her shoulders shook as sheughed, and when she stepped under a streemp, the light poured down, showing her tear–streaked face.
Max stayed at the window, watching her figure until it disappeared into the darkness.
He turned back and opened the surveince for Rachel’s location.
Ever since Rachel had sent him that so–called “strategy guide,” he had moved her into a hidden room inside his office. During the day, an assistant brought her food. At night, she slept there.
The room was extremely secret. Only he and his personal assistant knew about it.
Max rested his chin on his hand and watched the monitor carefully.
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Chapter 677 The Deal
The room was pitchck. Even with the lights off, the high–definition <b>camera </b><b>still </b>clearly showed the figure on the bed.
Rachel looked uneasy. She frowned from time to time and shifted in her sleep.
Max watched quietly, thinking.
In that small room, which was basically like a vault, there was almost no way Tess could get in.
Chapter 678 Abel’s Jealousy
Chapter 678 Abel’s Jealousy
But…
Max pressed his lips together, and Nadine’s face from a moment ago popped into his mind again.
<i>Forget </i>it. I <i>already </i><i>said </i><i>yes</i>, and <i>it </i><i>looks </i><i>like </i><i>I </i><i>won’t </i><i>lose </i><i>anything </i><i>anyway</i>.
Max turned off the surveince feed, leaned back slowly in the chair, and closed his eyes. But his lips moved silently, whispering Tess’s name over and over.
The next day.
“You’re going to Kingnd?”
Abel grabbed Tess’s hand in surprise, stopping her from packing.
Tess gently pulled her hand free, calm but firm. “Just for three days at most. Grandma said I have three days to finish things in Aetheris. I don’t think there’s much to do, so I booked a flight for tonight.”
Abel stood there, his eyes shifting–first unsure, then lighting up with excitement.
“I’ming with you!” he said.
“You?<b>” </b>
Tess raised an eyebrow and looked at him.
Abel couldn’t hide his excitement.
Tess was nning to officially announce she was taking over the Larsons on this trip, though Olivia and Benjamin would still handle most things for now.
But once Tess took over the Larsons, then he could…
Abel clenched his fists, his heart beating fast.
Now, if the family knew how he felt about Tess, they probably wouldn’t stop him!
Abel said, “Yeah. I’m going to Kingnd with you.”
“But, weren’t you supposed to stay in Aetheris to keep Grandpa and Grandmapany? When they go back, you’ll obviously go back with them too.”
Tess crossed her arms and looked straight at him, showing no mercy.
Abel’s lips twitched. He gave Tess a pouty re and half–whined, “Come on… Why are you like this…”
His eyes were full of that sad, puppy–dog look.
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<strong>Olivia Harris</strong> is an emerging author celebrated for her captivating romantic and steamy novels. With a talent for crafting deep emotional connections and fiery chemistry between her characters, Olivia’s stories offer readers an escape into worlds filled with passion, intrigue, and heart-stopping drama.