Chapter 21


    The threat in his words sent a shiver down Brielle’s spine. She was facing a man who had long held


    power, whose presence was somanding it could make her tremble.


    Instinctively, she leaned closer to Max, and when they were finally alone in the booth, she swallowed


    hard, her voiceced with anxiety, “Uncle Max, you’ll talk him out of it, right?”


    The marks on her neck were still visible under the dim lights, hinting at a possibility of sensuality.


    Brielle wouldn’t mind if something happened between them in this private booth. After all, the privacy


    here was impable, and she doubted any waiter woulde in to interrupt.


    She reached out, her hand seeking warmth, but all she found was the cold ss of her drink.


    “Go back,” he said, his gaze indifferent as he draped his suit jacket over her shoulders again, “Stay out


    of Andrew and Aubree’s business.”


    The implication was clear-if she meddled and something happened, he might not intervene. Knowing


    Andrew, he was capable of anything.


    Brielle pushed down a twinge of frustration and looked up at him, “Andrew is engaged to Tessa, and he


    and Aubree are technically siblings. What kind of rtionship is that? If Andrew’s influence on Aubree


    is inevitable, then Aubree’s feelings for him are either hate or love. Clearly, it’s thetter. I don’t want


    my friend to get hurt.”


    She had imagined many responses from Max, but none as cold as his next words.


    “Phencetic acid, dopamine-when people interact, they release a cocktail of hormones that create the


    illusion of love.”


    a


    His emotionless analysis came off as if he were a deity, observing the world’s entanglements as


    nothing more than fleeting distractions. Brielle was ovee with a chill. She knew Aubree all too well.


    Usually full of passion and allure, Aubree would only soften and pull in her sharp edges when she was


    around Andrew. If she wasn’t in love with him, she wouldn’t show such humility.


    What Brielle hadn’t anticipated was Max’s own rationality-hisplete disbelief in love’s existence.


    “If love is just an illusion, then why do people get married?”


    She was desperate to find examples to counter his point, but Max remained unfazed. “It’s oxytocin and


    vasopressin at work. Even our connection is simply a result of testosterone,” he exined.


    Speechless, Brielle felt a cold draft sweep through her. In a sudden move, she grabbed his tie and


    pushed him down onto the couch. She didn’t know why she did it, but when she.


    1/2


    kissed him, she felt a little sce in her heart.


    Biting down on his corbone, she licked the beads of blood that surfaced, “Uncle Max, did you study


    economics and psychology?”


    Max tilted his neck slightly, his hand cradling the back of her head, facilitating her nipping. “Economics


    andw. Psychology was a minor.


    N?velDrama.Org holds ? this.


    He had touched upon three disciplines that advocated absolute rationality.


    “And now, what do you think is influencing us?” She deliberately tilted her head back, both hands


    hooked around his neck, with sultry eyes.


    Max’s fingers traced her lips gently. Her face was beautiful, with eyes shaped like petals, which were


    cold when not smiling, but disarmingly charming with a grin.


    “Dopamine.” The initial passion all came from dopamine, but dopamine didn’tst long. From its


    perspective, possession was dull, and rtionships built on dopamine were an exciting yet short-lived


    roller-coaster ride.


    Watching the asceticism on his face waver slightly at her advance, something stirred in Brielle.


    “Uncle Max, you don’t have a fiancée, do you?”