All Chapters of Not a Love for Faint Hearts: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"She actually agreed? Congrats, Maxwell. You're finally free!" One of the guys laughed.Inside the private room, Maxwell's friends were still joking, disbelief written all over their faces.Even Maxwell himself froze for a second when he had heard it. For just a moment, something flickered in his deep, ocean-dark eyes—surprise.But more than anything… relief.He raised his arm and waved it carelessly. "Drinks are on me tonight."The whole room erupted in cheers.Except for Zoey Bradford. Her stubborn silhouette faded into the chaotic swirl of neon light. For reasons he couldn't quite explain, Maxwell glanced back at her one more time."How long do you think it'll take before she comes crawling back?" someone asked. "A week? Two?"Maxwell said with a sneer, "I'd say seven days.""Seven days from now, I'll marry Nancy. Get ready for my wedding party."The room exploded in excitement.Zoey had already left the private room. The sunlight outside was harsh, blinding. Only then di

When Zoey opened her eyes again, all she could see was the blinding white ceiling of a hospital room.The sharp smell of disinfectant flooded her senses. She scrambled up in panic, but the stinging shooting across her face and body forced her still."Miss!"Dr. Willow rushed over, grabbing her hand just as she was about to tear at the skin on her face."Don't move! You just underwent skin graft surgery. Right now... It's still fragile."Skin graft...?Zoey froze.She stumbled toward the sink, staring at the mirror.Her face—what was left of it—was covered in open wounds of all sizes. Fresh blood seeped from raw, mangled skin. The sheer sight of it made her eyes shut tight in despair.Dr. Willow's voice was still behind her, firm but helpless."Miss, you shouldn't move. I know... I know it looks bad. But if you take care of it properly, there's still hope. It might heal..."Tears slipped down her cheeks, soaking into the raw wounds and making them burn worse."But I... I don

Maxwell's gaze darkened as it lingered on Zoey, but in the end, he nodded. He agreed.But he had one condition. Nancy was moving into the villa—the same one he had bought for Zoey when they first got married.That afternoon, Nancy arrived. Rain poured outside. Her feet didn't even touch the ground as Maxwell carried her tightly in his arms. Her cheeks flushed pink as she whispered, half embarrassed, half playful, "You idiot... why didn't you tell me there were so many people here? Put me down..."Maxwell's expression didn't shift. Only the corner of his lips tugged upward, a trace of indulgence mixed with warning."Call me that again... and I'll cut out your tongue."Zoey froze.He'd said the exact same words to her once. Back when they were newly married.Maxwell only ever said things like that to the person he loved.In that moment, Zoey realized—he really did love Nancy.Her heart had long since gone numb. But her hands stayed busy, moving instinctively.Callie, ever sin

It wasn't until the next day that Zoey finally understood what Maxwell meant. But before she could react, a group of bodyguards shoved her into the blood transfusion room.A needle as thick as a thumb jabbed into her bruised, swollen arm. Even Dr. Willow, the one drawing her blood, couldn't help but wince. His voice trembled as he tried to intervene."Mr. Porter... Ms. Bradford just barely made it through surgery. If we take more blood now... I'm afraid—"Maxwell's gaze was ice, fixed on Zoey's frail silhouette. His voice, sharp and merciless, cut through the air."Don't worry about anything else. As long as Nancy and the baby are fine... nothing else matters."That's when Zoey realized Nancy was pregnant.And even though her blood type was the most common—Type A—Maxwell insisted that Zoey be the one to give her blood.As the first full bag filled, Zoey's eyelids grew heavier. Every word exchanged between them pricked into her chest like needles.'Maxwell... You'd really trade

Dr. Willow stared at the phone screen as the line went dead, letting out a long, quiet sigh.'Mr. Porter is impossibly stubborn,' he thought to himself. 'Yet, even now, worried out of his mind, and he still can't bring himself to admit it.'Dr. Willow had followed Maxwell for more than twenty years. He had watched as Maxwell's attitude toward Zoey shifted again and again—yet the one thing that never changed was his feelings for her.He still remembered when Maxwell was just a boy. The day Maxwell learned the truth—that Zoey's mother was the woman who drove his mother to her death—he didn't speak for an entire week.Dr. Willow could still picture Maxwell sitting by the window, head leaning against the glass, staring quietly at the balcony across the street. He could see Zoey there, twirling around in her little white dress, as though any second now she would skip down, grab his hand, and say—"Maxwell, let's go play."Maxwell sat there for hours. Just... watching.By the time Dr.