Reba: [Yes.]


    Max’s fingers tapped on his phone: [I’ll have Jack pick you up at 3:30 PM.]


    Reba replied with an “Okay”


    But she couldn’t help but wonder, ‘Didn’t he tell me to keep my distance from Jack? So why is he sending Jack to pick me up now?‘


    Once Max saw her reply, he updated his grandfather Sebastian, and after finishing up his tasks, he called Winston. “Any updates on what I asked you to investigate?”


    “The person you asked me to look into is in Jsburg,” Winston reported,ying out everything he knew. “And that person has a connection with Stephen Hanson from the Hanson family.”


    Max’s brows furrowed.


    ‘Stephen Hanson?‘ Max thought, surprised.


    ‘How could she be tangled up with Stephen Hanson?‘ he wondered, doubt flickering in his mind.


    “What kind of connection?” Max asked, his voice low and sharp.


    “Not sure yet,” Winston answered, treading carefully because he knew this person meant something to Max. “All I can tell is, she’s staying at a ce owned by Stephen Hanson–and nobody else knows about it.”


    Max’s lips pressed into a thin, hard line, and the air around him turned icy cold.


    After a long pause, he finally spoke, his voicepletely devoid of emotion.


    “Got it,” he said, his tone t and unreadable.


    Winston asked out of habit, “Should I keep digging?”


    Max answered tly, “No, that’s enough.”


    Winston replied, “Understood.” <fn18c8> The source of th?s content is FιndNovel</fn18c8>


    And just like that, the call ended.


    Even after ending the call, Max couldn’t calm down. Instead, his mind was restless, a storm of doubts swirling inside him, getting stronger with every wild guess.


    At three o’clock in the afternoon, Reba was wide awake.


    After lunch, Jessica and Ian headed out, leaving Reba alone with Amelia, who started listing all the things


    she needed to be careful about once she was at the Quinn family’s house.


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    Adhvary


    “You’re going to the Quinn family because Sebastian invited you,” Amelia reminded her seriously. “No matter how polite or friendly they seem, don’t open up to them. Just protect yourself.”


    “I know.” Reba said softly, still feeling uneasy about the Quinn family.


    Amelia gave her a serious look. “There’s something you might not like, but I hope you’ll at least consider it.”


    Reba hesitated. “What is it?”


    “If Sebastian ends up introducing Michael and his brothers to you, just go with whatever names he uses,” Amelia said casually, as if this wasn’t a big deal. “And stick with those names, even when you’re around other people. No need to overthink it.”


    Reba blinked, confusion all over her face: “Uncle?”


    Amelia nodded. “Yeah.”


    Reba bit her lip, still feeling uneasy.


    Amelia gave her shoulder a reassuring pat. “If you really don’t want to, I won’t make you. But calling them that will really annoy Michael–and it’ll let the world know that Sebastian’s granddaughter is here, for real.”


    The discussion about the banquet had gradually faded over the past month.


    Some new public chatter was needed to help protect Reba.


    “Okay,” Reba agreed.


    “If you really can’t bring yourself to say it, don’t force it,” Amelia said softly. She was never one to push—just give advice.


    Reba nodded.


    They talked about some other things, and right around 3:30, Mark Mason let Reba know there was a car outside waiting for her, saying it was there just for her.


    Reba told Amelia she was heading out, grabbed her bag, and stepped outside. She had barely taken a couple of steps when she saw Max, dressed in a sharp, expensive suit, getting out of the car. He gave her a slight nod, then looked past her to Amelia, who was standing at the door.


    Max’s lips parted in a polite greeting. “Aunt Amelia.”


    Amelia just gave a quiet “Mm.”


    “Grandpa asked me to invite you both over for a simple meal,” Max said, rying Sebastian’s message.


    “Just take Reba,” Amelia replied, cutting straight to the point without even bothering to exin. “I’m not interested.”


    Max didn’t say anything more.


    He’d already seen thising even before he arrived.


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    His face was as expressionless as ever, cold and unreadable. “Then we’ll be going. The Quinn family will always be your home. If you ever want toe back, just say the word.”


    Amelia didn’t respond.


    Max gave a slight nod, then turned and got into the car with Reba.


    Reba didn’t bother asking why it was Max picking her up instead of Jack. She just kept to herself, sitting silently in the car.


    As the car slowly pulled away, Reba caught Max’s gaze flickering across her face for barely a heartbeat before he turned away, as if nothing had happened.


    Time ticked by, slow and steady.


    They were about halfway there.


    After Max nced at her for the fourth time, Reba looked over and asked, “What is it?”


    Max said, “Nothing.”


    Reba replied, “Oh.”


    Max replied, “Mm.”


    Reba turned her gaze to the window, feeling strangely calm inside.


    The car was silent for a long moment before Max finally broke it. “Reba.”


    Reba didn’t turn her head. “Go ahead,” she said, her eyes still on the world outside. Deep down, she was bracing herself–‘Is he about to start with the shareholder talk again?‘ she thought, a little exasperated.


    “What’s Stephen Hanson really like?” Max asked, his tone frosty. “Did you spend much time around him when you were living with the Hanson family?”


    Reba nced away from the window, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. “Stephen Hanson?”


    Max’s eyes were unreadable. “Yeah.”


    “Not much. Jeffrey told me Stephen wasn’t a good guy and to keep my distance,” Reba said openly- nothing to hide since it wasn’t even a secret. “Honestly, I’ve barely seen him a handful of times over the years.”


    ‘If it wasn’t for these past few months… In thest five years, I’ve probably seen him less times than I can count on one hand, Reba thought to herself.


    The air around Max seemed to grow even colder.


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    Reba had a hunch Max might have some business with Stephen Hanson, but she didn’t press. Other people’s secrets just weren’t her concern.


    “Is he married?” Max asked again.


    Reba replied, “No.”


    Max continued, “Does he have a girlfriend?”


    Reba nced at him, a little suspicious.


    With Max’s personality, he’d never use me to snoop around about the Hanson Group. If he’s asking about this kind of personal stuff, he must be interested in Stephen–or maybe someone close to him, Reba thought, her mind suddenly on guard.


    ‘Max isn’t into guys, so Jeffrey must have been talking about Karen Lindsay, Reba reasoned.


    “Are you asking about Karen Lindsay?” Reba got straight to the point.


    Max paused, a fleeting look of surprise crossing his face at the mention of her name.


    After a moment, he finally nodded. “Yeah.”


    “I don’t know what the exact rtionship is between her and Stephen,” Reba replied, not embellishing anything and leaving out what Jeffrey had called her. “After Mom recovered, Stephen brought her over to visit and simply said they were good friends.”


    “Appreciate it,” Max said quietly, his tone a bit heavier than before.


    Reba murmured a soft “Mm,” leaving it at that.


    After that, the rest of the ride was pretty much silent. They barely exchanged a word.


    It wasn’t until the car rolled into Quinn Manor that Max finally nced over at Reba and told her, “Whatever they say at dinner tonight, just tune it out–pretend you never heard a word.”


    A hint of confusion shed in Reba’s eyes.


    She had no idea why he was suddenly giving her this warning.


    “Consider it my way of paying you back for earlier,” Max added, his voice cool as always. He was never the type to owe favors.


    “Thanks,” Reba said, just as unwilling to be indebted to anyone.


    The car pulled into the garage at Quinn Manor, and as soon as it stopped, Reba saw Sebastian and Oliver waiting for them. Her eyes met theirs as she got out.


    “Grandpa, Oliver,” Max greeted them as he stepped out of the car.


    “Mr. Sebastian,” Reba greeted politely, then turned to Oliver. “Grandpa Oliver.“–


    Max instinctively nced at her, surprised.


    Oliver was visibly taken aback..


    Oliver’s eyes lit up. “What did you just call me?”


    Reba, unsure at first, saw they weren’t angry and repeated tentatively, “Grandpa Oliver.”


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    “Hey there, Reba!” Oliver, usually the picture ofposure, suddenly rxed and treated her like she was his own granddaughter, gently guiding her toward the main hall. “You must be starving, right? There are snacks and fresh fruit waiting insidee with me, I’ll get you something to eat.”


    Reba instinctively nced at Sebastian.


    Max spoke up, “Go with Grandpa Oliver for now. I need to talk to Grandpa Sebastian about something.”


    Reba replied, “Okay.”


    As Reba followed Oliver further and further away, Sebastian finally showed some emotion on his face.


    Still staring in their direction, he couldn’t help butin, “Look at that–the old guy gets to be called ‘Grandpa‘ by Reba, and me, her official grandpa, I still haven’t even heard it once.”