The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Vivienne rolled her eyes at the scene before her and silently slipped out of the room.

Anna stood at the doorway, gripping Mara, who was feigning unconsciousness.

“Ms. Vivienne, what should we do with her?” “Forget her,” Vivienne waved dismissively. “Just feed this to Aaron when he wakes up.” Anna nodded in understanding. “Got it.” As Vivienne left, she couldn't help but give Mara a wry smile.

Meanwhile, Kenneth was floundering in the bedroom, shouting, “Isn't anyone coming to save me? Hello? Anybody?!” Anna glanced indifferently at Kenneth, then descended the stairs, dragging the “passed out” Mara behind her.

Mara bit back the pain, seething with resentment. Couldn’t this woman carry her down the stairs properly instead of dragging her like srag doll? Her legs were probably covered in bruises! And why on earth was Kenneth here? Mara had planned to trap Aaron and Vivienne together and then bring Percival over to witness. Even if nothing happened, the misunderstanding would be enough.

Without Percival, and with a rift between her and Aaron, her mission would be complete.

But Kenneth ended up being the one to show up, ruining everything! Idiot! It wasn’t until nightfall that Aaron finally opened his eyeing atop Kenneth.

With a throbbing headache, he sat up, parched and clueless about what had happened.

“Dude, you've been sitting on my junk,” Kenneth groaned.

Aaron jumped back as if electrocuted, stumbling until he hit a dresser, finally snapping to his senses.

“What the... How did you end up here? What the hell were you doing?” Kenneth sat up, cradling the fire extinguisher like a prized possession. “I should be asking you. You've been on top ofthe whole day. You've got sHulk strength or something; | couldn't even shove you off. Look at this bruise!” Kenneth lifted his shirt to reveal a red mark on his chest where Aaron had been lying.

Just then, Anna, who had been waiting, walked in to check on them and caught Kenneth with his shirt up and Aaron blushing.

She blinked. “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt.” With that, Anna hurried downstairs, thinking she had chosen the worst possible moment to appear.

Kenneth tried to follow her, but Aaron held him back.

“Explain yourself! What's going on here?” All Aaron remembered was being locked in a room with Vivienne, who seemed to be checking his pulse, and then nothing else.

As for why Kenneth was there and what Anna was doing there, he was utterly lost.

Kenneth sighed. “I chere to sort you out. What were you doing here, and why were you holding Vivienne's hand like that? | rushed in to rescue her from your clutches, and you just draggeddown and laid on top of me, trying to rip off my shirt. If | hadn't knocked you out with the fire extinguisher, my virtue would've been compromised!” Aaron frowned, clueless. “You brought a fire extinguisher?” Kenneth licked his lips, guilt flickering in his eyes.

The truth was, he had received a text from Percival saying Anna was coming over to discuss scollege prep with Aaron, so he brought the fire extinguisher as a precaution for the confrontation. But he hadn't expected to find Aaron and Vivienne in a bedroom, which altered his plans somewhat.

Anna: Do | sense Kenneth got played by someone? Percival: Really? | didn’t notice.

“Why do you care what | bring? What about you, holding onto Vivienne’s hand with dubious intentions?” Kenneth pressed.

Aaron was at a loss for words, remembering nothing.

Seeing Aaron drop the fire extinguisher inquiry, Kenneth clapped him on the shoulder, walking him out. “Forget it. Let's head back to campus.” Elsewhere, Vivienne smiled in satisfaction at the successful chip synthesis on her screen.

Percival was by her side, meticulously wiping her wrist with antiseptic wipes, one by one.

“That's enough,” Vivienne complained, withdrawing her hand. “The chip has fused with Mara’s body. Three more times, and it'll be complete.” Percival smiled faintly. “Vivienne, you're amazing.” Vivienne shot him a sideways glance, “Not as amazing as you. How did you know something was off with Aaron today?” Vivienne, skilled in medicine, could usually tell at a glance if someone was poisoned or ill. But she hadn't noticed anything amiss with Aaron today.

Nor had she found anything unusual in Mara’s home, be it the fruit tea or anything else.

How could Percival have been so certain? Percival pinched Vivienne’s palm gently. “I've got a sixth sense.” “Mr. Wolf, that’s not funny.” Percival raised an eyebrow playfully. “Actually, the drugs Mara bought were sold by Leopold.” Vivienne chuckled. “So, you knew all along Mara intended to drugand Aaron. You switched my medicine but let Aaron suffer. Weren't you afraid something might actually happen?” “Of course not.” Percival pulled Vivienne into his embrace. “Because | knew you wouldn't let anything happen.” Vivienne narrowed her eyes at Percival.

Any drug from his hand would be potent; Aaron must have been in agony.

She hadn’t expected Mr. Wolf to be so cunning.

Not only had he manipulated the medication, but he had also orchestrated a small punishment for Aaron and even involved Kenneth.

Such a childish scheme! It was a ploy designed by Percival, specifically targeting Aaron.

Percival didn’t deny it. Childish or not, he didn’t care. He treated anyone who liked and had designs on Vivienne with equal regard.Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for All Books Updates...

But getting close to his Vivienne was no walk in the park.

He couldn't lay a finger on Aaron since he was Vivienne’s friend, apprentice, and the leader of the Miller family, the one Vivienne had pinned all her hopes on.

To discipline him, Percival had to be subtle.

Vivienne found it both exasperating and amusing. A grown man in his thirties, getting into petty squabbles with a kid.

But maybe it was for the best; it served as a lesson for Aaron. To fall for such an obvious trap and nearly lose his life over it was unacceptable. If he didn’t take this chance to reflect, the role of head of the Miller family would surely slip through his fingers.

“Vivienne, right now Mara’s only dealing with Gillian in the shadows. It looks like Gillian’s her superior. Keeping tabs on Mara has becpointless; we can leave that to Anna. The real focus should be on Gillian.” Percival leaned his head on Vivienne’s shoulder, gazing at her delicate profile, and couldn't resist pecking her on the cheek.

Vivienne chuckled, “Yeah, Gillian’s the key. Lately, she’s been meddling in Vanguard Agency's affairs more than a little. Leopold's been up in arms about it plenty of times.”