Chapter 16 He is what I need
Veronica's POV:
For the next twenty-one minutes, I didn’t move.
I just sat there, cross-legged on the mat, watching Theo flow through his yoga routine.
I couldn’t take my eyes off him. At the rise and fall of his chest, the quiet rhythm of his breath, his angelically handsome physique.
And yet, I couldn’t shake the thought that he knew what he was doing to me, still he kept on doing his routine, with absolute dedication.
He wasn’t actually trying to impress me… but that only made him more irresistible.
A strange heat pooled in my chest.
Admiration. Desire. Peace. All tangled together until I couldn’t tell them apart.
When his routine finally ended, Theo turned to face me, his breath steady and his expression soft... looking like he had just stepped out of a dream.
He moved closer to me, making my heart beat louder... while his green eyes glowed with that quiet confidence I’d come to crave.
I reached out to touch him, almost without realizing it, my fingers brushing over his bare chest, tracing the defined lines of muscle, the warmth of his skin, the pulse that beat steadily beneath my touch.
He didn’t move.
He just smiled, and looked down at me, letting me explore him. The attraction between us was intense now.
When I finally met his gaze again, something inside me just… gave in.
I leaned forward, closing the small space between us, my lips brushing his softly—as if I was testing the balance between peace and passion itself that was between us.
He kissed me back, deepening it with a kind of tenderness that made my heart ache with sweetness.
I slid my hands over his back, tracing the firm lines of his muscles, my fingertips following the ridge of his spine. Every part of me felt alive in his arms, making me feel steady and clear... and in that heartbeat, I knew.
For a fleeting moment, everything felt right within me.
It was him. He was what I wanted.
But then his phone buzzed.
The vibration cut through the silence like an unwelcome jolt, and Theo pulled back with a frustrated groan. “Damn the caller,” he muttered under his breath.
I watched him with a dazed smile, feeling breathless, my heart still racing... as he reached for his phone—with his tousled blonde hair, his bare chest, everything about him was so effortlessly perfect... that it almost hurt to look at him.
Then his expression shifted. “It’s not a call,” he said, frowning as his thumb tapped the screen. “It’s an alert.” He let out a sigh. “Apparently, my brother just decided to step into a club to party his ass off... as usual.”
The warmth between us lingered in the air, but I could see it in his eyes... that familiar mix of irritation and worry whenever Max was involved.
I stepped closer to him, curiosity tugging at me as I peered over his shoulder.
On his phone screen glowed a small tracking map... a blinking dot pulsing on a downtown location.
I blinked, unsure if I was seeing it right. “Wait… don’t tell me you actually keep tabs on your brother?”
Theo said. “Yes,” his voice was still calm, but edged with quiet exhaustion. “I have to. Otherwise, he’ll end up doing something stupid.”
There was a heaviness in his tone... not anger, but concern.
I could tell this wasn’t just sibling annoyance. It was something deeper… the kind of responsibility that weighs on a person who’s been forced to grow up too fast.
He slipped his phone into his pocket and turned toward the door. “You should stay here, Veronica,” he said gently. “I’ll go handle it.”
Something in me ached. “No,” I said, stepping forward. “I’m coming with you.”
Theo shook his head. “It’s unnecessary. You don't have to come there..."
“I said I’m coming,” I cut him off, my voice firmer than I expected. “It looks like you’ve been protecting everyone else for too long. Let me stand beside you this time.”
For a second, he just looked at me... his green eyes softening, as if he was torn between logic and emotion.
Then, with a resigned exhalation, he nodded.
“Fine,” Theo said quietly, fastening the last button on his shirt. “But stay close to me. The kind of club he goes to is usually filled with assholes.”
He slipped on his suit jacket, the fabric gliding over his sculpted shoulders, covering the beautiful body I’d just seen move with such grace minutes ago.
And just like that... the serene yogi was gone. In his place stood Theo Ashford, the CEO, smart, composed, and all business.
I couldn’t help but admire how easily he could shift... calm like water one moment, commanding like fire the next.
By the time we reached the club, the sun was still hanging high... but inside, it might as well have been midnight. The music pulsed through the walls, the air thick with perfume, sweat, and expensive liquor.
The place was crowded, filled with high-profile faces and wild laughter, the kind of luxury chaos that only trust-fund kids could afford.
I clung closer to Theo as we moved past tables of champagne bottles and people who looked far too glamorous to be that drunk at noon.
His hand stayed firmly at the small of my back, guiding me protectively through the noise.
He checked his phone once more... that familiar blinking dot on the screen. “This way,” he said, his voice low but sure.
We went up a set of stairs to a private lounge area, quieter but still steeped in neon light. And there he was — Maximilian Ashford.
Sitting lazily on a velvet couch, his dark hair was a tousled mess, a few pills scattered on the glass table before him.
He wasn’t surrounded by people—just the bartender silently taking orders while pretending not to notice the chaos brewing.
Theo exhaled, rubbing his forehead. “Thank God he’s alone,” he muttered under his breath. “Usually, he’d have at least two girls hanging off him by now.”
I looked at Max... looking devilishly handsome, and dangerous... even in his solitude... and I couldn’t help but feel a strange ache.