Chapter 12 Was I in love triangle?
Veronica's POV:
The night air was cool against my skin as I stood near the edge of the ocean, waves crashing softly at my feet. The scent of salt and seaweed wrapped around me, grounding me after the chaos that had just unfolded.
Behind me, the police were escorting the stranger away in handcuffs, his curses fading into the wind. A medic was tending to Max’s arm near the deck... the same arm that had fought for me just moments ago.
I couldn’t look away from him.
The guilt was sitting heavy in my chest. For judging him. For calling him names. For assuming, he was nothing but the spoiled bad-boy he appeared to be.
Maybe… I was wrong. Maybe beneath all that arrogance and chaos was someone who cared... fiercely, and deeply.
When everyone finally left, the beach fell quiet again. Only the rhythmic whisper of the waves remained.
I turned to see Max walking toward me, the moonlight tracing over his tattoos, his hair tousled by the wind. He stopped a few feet away, his expression unreadable... softer than usual, but still laced with that magnetic confidence that could draw anyone to him.
“Are you really alright, Veronica?” he asked, his voice low, steady.
“I’m fine,” I murmured. Then, after a pause, “I just… I’m sorry about earlier, okay? I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that.”
He gave a small smile, the kind that tugged at one corner of his mouth. “Hey, it’s alright. It’s not the first time someone’s misunderstood me… and it sure as hell won’t be the last. I'm used to this..."
I blinked up at him. “You sound so sure of that.”
He chuckled... low, rough, and a little self-aware. “People don’t really get me, Veronica. They just see the tattoos, the parties, the headlines. They don’t see the rest.” He tilted his head, eyes glinting like blue fire. “Guess I’m a bit of a mystique.”
That made me laugh softly.
But then our eyes met... and the laughter died in my throat.
There was something in his gaze this time that stole my breath. Maybe it was the heat between us... the vulnerability of that moment.
However, the pull between us was undeniable, stronger than the tide crashing behind us... and before I could think, he stepped closer.
His hand slid to my waist, firm and sure, and in one swift motion, he drew me against him.
“Max…” I whispered, but the word barely left my lips before he closed the space between us.
He didn’t ask my permission like his brother had done. He didn’t wait.
He just kissed me... hard, fierce, and consuming... like he’d been holding back a storm for far too long and finally let it break.
His mouth was warm and demanding against mine, filled with fire and frustration and something dangerously close to longing.
And though my mind screamed that this was wrong... that Theo was gentle, safe, the one who’d taught me to breathe again — none of it mattered. Not here. Not now.
Because in that moment, I was wrapped in Max’s fire and the crash of waves I felt against my legs, I was feeling a different kind of passion, a raw, firey one.
After the kiss, every nerve in my body felt like it was on fire. My heart was pounding so hard I could feel it in my fingertips.
Max didn’t move away. He stayed close... his breath warm against my lips, his hands still resting at my waist, holding me just enough to make me feel both safe and unsteady.
For a heartbeat, neither of us spoke. The sound of the waves filled the silence, the world shrinking until there was only him and the dizzying thrum of my pulse.
Then, in a voice rough with restraint, he whispered against my lips,
“I don’t want to go any further, Veronica. Not tonight. I’ll take this slow… and earn your trust.”
I blinked, caught completely off guard by his words... the gentleness hidden beneath all that danger.
And when I looked up at him... a smile found its way to my lips before I could stop it.
That night, I couldn’t sleep.
Even the waves outside crashed softly against the shore, but inside my head, it was complete chaos.
What the hell did I just do?
I turned over in bed for what felt like the hundredth time, staring at the ceiling, my heart still racing with the ghost of his touch. Max’s kiss still burned on my lips... fierce, consuming, and wild—but Theo’s gentleness lingered in my chest like a sweetness I couldn’t forget.
Did I really just kiss both of them on the same day?
The thought made me bury my face in the pillow, groaning in frustration.
How could I possibly pick one, when I was longing for both in such different ways?
Theo made me feel seen. Safe. Like I could rebuild my life again piece by piece.
But Max… Max made me feel. Alive. Reckless. Like I could burn down everything that had ever hurt me and finally be free.
My heart was split in two, and I didn’t know which side of myself to listen to... the one that wanted peace or the one that craved fire.
Was I really caught in a love triangle... the kind that only exists in movies?
The next morning, I couldn’t take it anymore. I grabbed my phone and called Penny.
The moment she picked up, I started ranting. “I just feel so confused, Penny. Please—help me out here. I don’t know what to do.”
She sighed dramatically on the other end. “You lucky goat. You’re stuck in a beach house with two ridiculously hot men, both clearly into you. It’s hard to feel empathy right now.”
I groaned, pressing a hand on my forehead. “You don’t understand, Penny. It’s not just that they’re attractive. They’re both… really good men. In their own ways. Theo’s calm and gentle, and Max—he’s intense, but he cares more than he lets on. I just—”
“Don’t overthink it,” she cut in, her tone light and teasing. “Just go with the flow, V. Give it a day or two. You’ll know soon enough which one your heart really wants.”
I leaned back on the couch, staring out at the waves beyond the glass windows. Maybe she was right. Maybe I was rushing into panic over something that needed time.
It was too early to draw conclusions…