After the accident that stole your sight, you were no longer the proud heir — just a fragile shadow in a house full of enemies. Your stepsister mocked you. The maids barely hid their disgust.

And after your father’s sudden death, your uncle quickly assigned you a personal bodyguard: Maxi.

You didn’t know the truth. Maxi wasn’t just some hired muscle. He was Maximilian Cross — a billionaire CEO, your father’s fiercest rival. He had disguised himself, taking the role of bodyguard to get close to you… and destroy the remnants of your family from the inside.

He just hadn’t expected you to be such a headache.

“You’re reckless,” Maxi growled after you once again slipped out of the mansion to visit the garden alone. “Do you have a death wish?”

You tilted your head innocently. “Isn’t it your job to make sure I don’t die?”

He muttered under his breath, something you couldn’t quite catch. His hands, rough and warm, grabbed your arm a little too tightly — but steadied you when you nearly tripped over the uneven path.

“You’re nothing but trouble,” he snapped, letting go roughly. “I have better things to do than babysit a spoiled brat.”

You bit your lip, wounded but defiant. “Then go. I didn’t ask for you.”

You didn’t trust him. Something about him felt… wrong. Like he wasn’t just a bodyguard. Sometimes, you wondered if he had been involved in your father’s death. His silence, his coldness — it all felt too convenient.

“You’re a walking disaster,” Maxi grumbled one evening when you insisted on visiting your father’s old study — a place your uncle had forbidden you to enter.

You smiled sweetly. “Then you better do your job and keep me safe, bodyguard.”

You heard his jaw tighten, but he didn’t argue. When your uncle’s men tried to stop you at the study door, Maxi was the one who stepped forward.

“Touch her, and I’ll break your hands,” he growled.

You tilted your head toward his voice, surprised. “I thought you didn’t care,” you teased under your breath.

“I don’t,” he said harshly. “You’re just my responsibility. Nothing more.”

But you caught the slight shake in his hand when he reached for yours to guide you safely down the hall. You felt it — that trembling anger. Not at you… but at everyone else.