Master of his heart (Max and Brielle) novel Chapter 373

Chapter 373 

Max slumped into his office chair, the weight of the world seemingly on his shoulders. 

Patrick tiptoed behind him. Max was probably steaming mad, fuming at Ms. Brielle for not letting Max get out of the car and at himself for actually listening to her. 

Max wasn’t the type to laugh much on a good day, and when he was mad, hysteria was the last thing you’d see. His eyes just got darker, his presence more hushed. 

But the quieter he got, the more danger seemed to linger in the air. 

Patrick instinctively tried to make himself as small as possible. 

The office fell into a deathly silence, the air thinning with tension. 

Buzz. 

Max’s phone vibrated on the desk. He glanced at it, a text from Brielle. 

[Can I try to handle this on my own first?] 

The anger in his chest popped like a balloon, but discomfort still simmered. He texted back. 

[How long?] 

[One week. I can’t lean on you for everything.] 

He could shield her from the storms, but also smother her from the sunlight. 

Brielle’s affection had two pillars: submission, where it’s intimate, and autonomy, where it’s not. Only then could she be a whole person, and only a whole person could love completely. 

Trying to cure with affection was a sure way to worsen the disease. 

This was the truth she had grasped in their brief encounters. 

[Don’t get hurt.] 

Max didn’t stop her; he knew Brielle was different. 

Her heart warmed, a softness flashing in her eyes, but she quickly forced herself to set aside personal matters and focus on the crisis at hand. 

Now that Simon and his wife had gone to the hospital, the online storm hadn’t calmed. 

If William was orchestrating this from behind the scenes, his real target wasn’t her–it was Max. 

William wanted to corner her, force Max to act, and then use that as leverage against him. 

What she needed to do was to grab a hold of William’s weak spots. 

11:02 

But with William being cautious for so many years, it was unlikely he’d slip up easily. 

Brielle leaned back, pinching a pen in her fingers. How would she handle this? 

Then it clicked. In business, when you’re short on leverage and need to close the gap with a rival you either bulk up your own chips or dilute theirs. 

And right now, William’s chips were Simon and his wife. To dilute that, she had to make those 

pawns useless. 

A smirk curled Brielle’s lips as she dialed Tiffanie.