Maxwell crossed his arms when he realized that Anna was staring at him.
"I'm not leaving until I've hugged my children and spent at least an hour with them."
Adam saw Anna's passionate gaze on Maxwell, and his fury grew in his chest.
"That's not what I agreed to, Anna." Adam said flatly.
"Please, Adam. I... Let me take advantage of the fact that we're already here? I miss them so much."
"Then go, so you can have that hour soon. I have to leave. Appointments, remember?"
"I have something to sort out in this house, too, before I leave." Anna said and turned to Max, when she realized that this time Adam didn't object. "Is she here?"
Maxwell stared at her with fear in his eyes, but before he could say anything, Adam intervened.
"You're crazy if you think I'm going to allow you two to be alone! That will never happen again, but if Max comes with me, I don't mind you staying here." He said amused.
Anna turned to Adam with a reassuring smile.
"That's great, Adam. Take Max with you. What I have to deal with here is not up to him."
"Anna... You can't kill her." Max said, staring into his eyes. "You promised me you'd just do it, one more time, and your father told me, while we were watching you and Jenna from the office, about what you did to Sarah. I just love you, and it will be like that forever. But for now, I need her."
Adam looked at Anna angrily, but pretended not to notice that she already knew about Camille. He pretended not to notice that the two of them had met and talked about it.
"You missed the family reunion because of her. I think your feelings and priorities are changing."
"It wasn't because of her, exactly... It was because of my... desires. I missed the time, Anna, I didn't see it go by, I'm sorry. You're still my greatest love. You know that.
"I'm not so sure about that anymore."
"Stop it! Who cares who Max is fucking? You're mine now, Anna, and I'll never let you go back to him. I'm even willing to adopt my nephews so that Max can be happy with his Camille." Adam said wryly, but the idea was very pleasing to his own ears.
"You'll never have my children, Adam. That includes Ian, who is my firstborn heir." Maxwell said, turning back into the man Anna knew and loved. The man who stood up for his family.
Adam winked at Maxwell.
"You'll change your mind soon enough." Adam said mysteriously.
"Then get out of here. Both of you. I want to talk to Camille alone.
"I can't allow that, Anna." Maxwell said, as if his words hurt himself more than Anna.
"Of course you can't, Max. She's become more important in your life than your own family." Anna said disappointedly.
"No, Anna. That's not true."
"Then trust me, Max. I'm not going to kill her." Anna said, looking away so that neither of them could see the hurt in her eyes.
"You don't trust the woman who says she loves Max?" Adam asked, clearly amused by the situation. "Let her satisfy her curiosity, brother. She'll be restless until she sees the woman who has replaced her in her life."
Maxwell stared at Adam, and then at Anna. He couldn't control his anger at the moment. So much so that he wanted Adam to take Anna away from the house. But he knew that if he did that, he would lose Anna forever, and that wasn't what he wanted. He knew Adam was right in his observation. Camille would become an obsession for Anna, and she would stay up nights planning bad things for the young woman. He understood that she believed that by doing this she was fighting for her family and that she would only be in Adam's company until the month that Ian had promised Adam was up.
"All right, Anna. Your father must have gone back to the mansion by now, and I'm going there too. Adam, you can come with me if you want. That way, you can spend time with your nephews and our mother." Max said slyly. He knew that if he stayed there, he could fill Anna's head with ideas about torturing Camille.
"Let's go. Sure." Adam said and turned to Anna. "When you've finished here, there'll be a car waiting to take you back to the mansion."
"I thank you both for understanding."
Max and Adam left, and Anna only relaxed when, through the living room window, she saw Adam and Max get into the same car and drive off down the road. She turned away from the window. Now all she had to do was look for Camille and observe her room. She wanted to know how much comfort Max had provided for her. She didn't like the fact that he had put maids on her. She should take care of the house herself. And she would demand it as soon as she returned to the mansion where her children were.
Anna walked around the house and found the kitchen. There was only one person there. A woman was sitting there, peeling garlic. When she saw her, she looked at her indifferently and turned her attention back to what she was doing.
"Look... You can start by tidying up and cleaning the rooms. Then Camille will look for you and tell you what your role here will be." The woman said in a tedious tone.
"So you mean Max is hiring another maid to help with the housework?" Anna asked, turning red with anger. "You can stop what you're doing now! And go to the mansion if you want to keep a job, a salary and even your life where my family is and help in the kitchen there, or you can leave and find another job." Anna said stiffly.
"And who do you think you are, coming to give me orders?" The woman asked defiantly.
"I'm not very important, but for now, I'm Max's wife."