Chapter 736 The Chessboard Turns
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“What I mean is, what you’ve been doing is about to bear fruit. If I’m not mistaken, you came here to remind me of our deal, or rather, to threaten me. But did it ever ur to you that I wouldn’t make it so easy for you to threaten me?
Tess’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Max stared into her eyes, so close yet veiled in a mist he couldn’t prate. He could no longer see clearly through the person before him.
Her progress over the past few months had been startling.
Heughed despite himself, though there was a grinding, teeth–clenched edge to it. “Are you that confident?”
“Naturally. And if all else fails…”
Tess’s fingers dipped into her handbag and emerged holding a slender silver voice recorder.
“Perhaps our conversation today could serve as evidence in court.”
<i>p</i>. <i>p</i><i>. </i><i>p</i>.
Max was livid, a near–hysterical edge to his apuse.
His handsome features contorted into something ugly and menacing.
“I really underestimated you, Tess. I didn’t expect you toe prepared.”
His teeth ground together, a chill radiating from him.
Tess remained unppable. She elegantly lowered her gaze and took another deliberate sip of her coffee. “I suppose I should thank you, Mr. Hunt. The coffee you provided is excellent, and the evidence you’ve handed me isn’t bad either.”
She raised her cup in a mock toast, her demeanor infuriatingly nonchnt.
Max’s fingers tightened around his spoon, the metal threatening to bend.
The puppet he’d once controlled had not only cut its strings, but was now manipting him.
The thought was maddening.
“Tess, I do have feelings <i>for </i>you. This café is under my name. Right now, aside from the <b>staff </b>and you, there’s no one else here. You’ve just revealed your recorder. What makes you think
Chapter 736 The Chessboard Turns
I’d be kind enough to let you walk out?”
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Seeing that reason wasn’t working, his simmering anger boiled over. The pleasant facade shattered, leaving pure, unadulterated menace.
Tess merely smiled and tossed the recorder onto the table in front of him. “It’s brand new. It hasn’t even been turned on.”
Max froze.
He’d been yed. Again.
“However,” she continued, her smile turning razor–sharp, “I’m wearing a transmitting device. Raven heard every word perfectly clearly from outside.”
That final reversal drained the light from Max’s eyes. “What exactly do you want?”
Tess lifted her chin. “Max, since it’s just the two of us, there’s no need for empty pretenses. Talk of feelings is meaningless.”
Max frowned, his gaze locked on her.
“You want the Larsons‘ support. I want Rachel from you, and ideally, more evidence of your past dealings with Nadine. We’re, in theory, equal partners.”
Tess spread her hands. “But the person you arranged this time crossed a line. An uncontroble variable, as far as I’m concerned. Logically, I have no reason to continue this partnership. First, Rachel is essentially irrelevant to me. Her only connection is through Nichs, and he’s a pawn I can easily discard if needed.” She gave azy, theatrical yawn, her eyes never leaving his face. “Second, I already have most of the evidence against Nadine. Whether I have what’s in your hands or not makes little difference.”
Max stared at Tess, at her expressionless face, and slowly realized she meant every word.
His initial move had been both a reminder and a test, a probe into the Larson family’s reach and Tess’s own mettle. He had never truly been a man ruled by emotion. Profit always came first. Tess’s greatest appealy in the power behind her name, yet Nadine had sworn to him with absolute confidence that everything was under control. That hesitation had led him here.
“However, I’m still willing to give you a chance, Mr. Hunt.”
Tess said, breaking the tense silence with a smile that was meant to be gracious. “From what I know, Shannon is about five months pregnant now, isn’t she?”
The shift in topic was so abrupt that Max didn’t react at first. When he did, he kept silent, guarded.
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Chapter 736 The Chessboard Turns
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“And the other person you’re working with is Nadine. If I’m not wrong, she and Henry are no longer of one mind.”
Tess stirred her coffee leisurely before lifting her gaze.
Max felt his heart jolt.
In those clear eyes, every scheme and calction seemedid bare.
How does she know?!
Tess didn’t miss the faint tremor in his fingertips or the flicker of shock he couldn’t quite
suppress
“So, between her and me, who do you think has the better odds of winning?”
She mused, propping her chin on her hand with an air of innocent curiosity. Max felt <i>a </i>chill crawl through his chest. To him, Tess looked less like a woman and more like a beast calmly watching its prey.
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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.