Mag-log inVeronica’s POV:I stared at Theo for a long moment after asking him why I should forgive Max.And suddenly, something inside me felt exhausted.I was tired of constantly trying to understand two men who carried entire storms inside themselves. Tired of feeling pulled in different directions emotionally until I no longer recognized my own thoughts anymore.I looked at Theo standing in front of me, calm as always, unreadable in ways that made me want to scream sometimes.And for the first time, I wanted out."To hell with them. To hell with this entire triangle."I was done.Done trying to decode hidden feelings between us, or balancing myself between brothers who loved each other and somehow kept hurting each other through me.I opened my mouth, ready to say it.Ready to call everything off.But before I could, my phone rang.I glanced at the screen.Father.My brows furrowed slightly before I answered. “What?”“You sound irritated,” he said immediately.“Because I am.”“I spoke to Cha
Chase’s POV:The engagement announcement was everywhere.Every platform, business page, and gossip account.Every luxury media outlet obsessed with the Ashfords and the Whitmores.Veronica Whitmore engaged to Max Ashford.The headlines replayed in Chase’s mind like something designed specifically to torment him.He stared at the livestream clip again from his office screen, and his jaw was tight enough to hurt.Veronica stood beside Max smiling while reporters shouted questions at them. Max’s hand rested against her waist while flashes exploded around them.And Veronica smiled.“No,” he muttered under his breath.His hand slammed shut against the laptop. “No. No, absolutely not.”Veronica couldn’t really slip out of his hands. Not after everything he tried.And Max? That bastard didn’t deserve her.Without thinking further, Chase grabbed his keys and left.An hour later, he was walking into Mr. Whitmore’s office without waiting for permission.Veronica’s father barely looked up from t
Veronica's POV:I didn’t know what emotion hit me first when I saw them together. Because I was both confused and angry.The blonde woman still stood beside Max with a lazy smile on her lips, completely unbothered by the chaos she had caused. One of her manicured fingers was lightly touching his arm like she belonged there.Something burned in me at that.“Seriously, Max? This is what you’ve been doing?”Max looked horrified instantly. “Veronica, no...”But then my mind paused. And suddenly the bigger picture snapped into place.Chase. Of course. It was always Chase."Chase set this up," I said.Max blinked."Think about it," I said. "He was downstairs. He saw you come in, or he knew you were here, or he arranged for you to end up here... I don't know which one yet but I know it was one of them. And then he made sure we knew about the girl before we had any context for what we were walking into."I moved my wheelchair past Max and pushed back through the VIP lounge door, and the girl
Max's POV:At some point, it stopped feeling like distraction with her.It started feeling very wrong.My mind wasn’t here anymore. It hadn’t been for a while.I pulled back this time, not because of a passing thought... but because I couldn’t just continue with her anymore.She noticed immediately. “What is it now?”I ran a hand through my hair, stepping back like I needed distance to think straight. “I can’t do this.”Her expression changed from confusion to mixing with irritation. “You couldn’t do this five minutes ago?”“I shouldn’t have done it then either.”She folded her arms slightly. “Okay… what changed?”I hesitated for a second, then said it plainly. “I have a fiancée.”That landed on her hard. She blinked at me, then let out a short, disbelieving breath. “You have a fiancée… and you’re here with me?”“I know how that sounds.”“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I want to hear how you explain it.”I looked away for a moment, and my jaw was tightening before I forced myself t
Max's POV:The VIP lounge above the bar was the kind of place that existed specifically to provide wealthy people with the illusion of privacy.Low lighting, private booths with high backs, music loud enough to make conversation feel contained. I had been in rooms like this a hundred times in my life for reasons I could account for clearly and explain to anyone who asked.I was having some difficulty accounting for how I had arrived in this particular one tonight.Sofia was beside me, close enough that the our conversation had shifted from the bar downstairs into something with a different geographical location, and I was aware with the part of my brain that was still running its usual operational checks that I had moved through the last hour with something that was not quite intention and not quite accident but somewhere in the uncomfortable space between them.She had a good laugh. That was the first thing I had noticed after the hooker comment had nearly ended the conversation befo
Max's POV:How stupid had I been?The question wouldn’t leave me alone.It followed me down the hallway, down the elevator, out into the cold night air like a shadow I couldn’t outrun. I should have known better. I did know better.And yet I still stood there, watching them like some fool who needed proof of what was already obvious. Veronica never let Theo go. Not really. Not in the way I needed her to.I let out a harsh breath and ran a hand through my hair, pacing once before pulling my car door open.The city lights blurred as I drove, but I barely registered anything around me.My mind kept replaying the same image.Veronica sitting there, looking at him like he was the only thing supoorting her. Theo standing too close of his place in her world.And me?I wasn’t in that moment at all.I laughed under my breath, bitter and sharp.What a joke I have become.She agreed to marry me, yes. But love? That wasn’t fully just for me.Even if she loves me... she will never forget me brothe
Veronica's POV:I'd seen Max in many forms by now.The surfer boy playing in waters... The party boy with a drink in hand and that dangerous smile. The bad boy with his tattoos and irreverent attitude.I've seen him even drunk and sick, vulnerable in ways he'd probably hate me remembering.But I nev
Veronica's POV:Let it be tails, I thought desperately as the coin spun through the air, catching the light.It landed with a soft clink on the coffee table.Heads.Theo groaned deeply... as he slumped back against the couch cushions.Max, on the other hand, was overjoyed. He literally jumped up on
Veronica's POV:"Thank you so much," I said to the maid... with genuine gratitude, warming my voice as I gathered my dishes and brought them to the sink.She was already there, rinsing plates under the stream of water in a robotic way...Usually it was only her loading the dishes into the dishwashe
Veronica's POV:I was seated between the two brothers... in the center of the oversized couch—Theo to my left, Max to my right.The movie played on the massive screen in front of us, something action-packed that Max had chosen, but I wasn't really paying attention to the explosions and car chases.







