?Chapter 804:

    Before Maia could get a word out, Chris pursed his lips with exaggerated suspicion, his eyebrows climbing upward. “Hold on… could it possibly be that you’re jealous?”

    Maia whipped her head away with theatrical indignation, folding her arms across her chest. “Absolutely not.”

    “It’s just a little strange, that’s all,” she muttered after letting the silence stretch between them, her eyes flickering with something unreadable. “You might see her as just a cousin, but does she really see you the same way?”

    Her seemingly innocent question cut straight through to something deeper.

    Chris felt his thoughts scatter for a moment. His mind drifted back to those brutal days at the Cooper family’s residence, when everyone else treated him like an unwanted stain on the family name. Mariana had been different, though. She had offered him warmth and genuine concern when no one else would even look his way.

    “Maybe she just took pity on me back then,” Chris said with a soft chuckle.

    Maia nced at him but didn’t press further, shifting her gaze slightly before changing the subject. “Speaking of tomorrow’spetition, if I actually manage to win, is there anything from Cooper Group that you’d want?”

    “Me?” The question clearly caught Chris off guard.

    He considered it for a moment, then broke into a smile that radiated such genuine warmth it could have melted Maia on the spot. “Honestly, there’s nothing from Cooper Group that I need or want. Just seeing you win would be enough to make me happy.”

    Something flickered across Chris’ expression then, as if a memory had surfaced unexpectedly. When he spoke again, his voice carried the gentle quality of wind across still water. “Actually, if there’s one thing I can’tpletely let go of, it would be Grandpa. Kolton has made sure I can never visit him.”

    At those words, Maia pressed her lips together and fell into thoughtful silence. She looked into Chris’ deep eyes, realizing for the first time how little she truly knew about him.

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    “But that’s my burden to carry, not yours,” Chris said firmly, his voice regaining its steady warmth as his expression settled back to normal. “You should focus on what you want from Cooper Group when you win. Don’t be modest about it. Take everything you can get your hands on.”

    Chris’ words drew a genuineugh from Maia. “Here you are, a Cooper family member, actually encouraging me to strip them of everything I can.”

    “They’ve never shown me an ounce of appreciation, so why should I waste any concern on them? What matters to me is making sure you, my wife, get what you deserve.” Chris’ eyes sparkled with mischief as he chuckled softly.

    “You’re absolutely shameless,” Maia shot back, her smile widening as their eyes met. “There’s something that’s always puzzled me though. At Cooper Group’s banquet, Laurence clearly held deep affection for you, and he seemed to have a wonderful rtionship with your mother as well. So why couldn’t she marry into the Cooper family? What left you growing up as an out-of-wedlock child?”

    A thoughtful look swept across Chris’ face as he nced toward the distant horizon. “That’s a story with some history behind it. I’d rather share it with you properly, when we have more time.”

    Although sorrow lingered in his eyes, a delicate smile curved his lips.

    Bathed in golden sunlight, Chris seemed like a figure out of an old master’s painting. The sky’s edge glowed with crimson and gold, peaceful and expansive. Maia found her gaze lingering on him, and in that moment, a vision of his mother shed unexpectedly in her mind — a picture of calm beauty and quiet strength.

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