The Billionaire's Secret Quartet

Chapter 1404
“Mr. Falconet I’ve still got something to do today. Let’s catch up another time,” Dr. Funke paused, flashing a polite smile at Alaric
before stepping into the elevator.
Alaric lingered at the elevator entrance, not joining him inside. The roguish grin that usually played on his face was replaced by a
more formal expression. “Alright, I’ll contact you another day. Have a good day.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than the elevator doors slid shut.
“Hey, Dr. Funke...” Hertha stepped forward, about to say something when the doors closed.
Watching the elevator descend, Hertha pushed Alaric’s arm irritably, “What are you playing at? You knew we were here to see
Dr. Funke, and you just let him leave!”
Alaric’s arm swayed to the side with her push. Turning his mischievous eyes to her, the familiar playful spark was still there.
“Hertha, three years have passed and you’re still as brash as ever!”
“Who’s brash? Alaric, you think you can lecture me?” Hertha glared at him sideways, clearly annoyed.
“You guys catch up, I’ll head down,” interjected Thalassa, noticing Hertha and Alaric’s reunion tinged with unspoken feelings. The
way they looked at each other spoke volumes of their longing despite the bickering that ensued.
Deciding to leave them alone, Thalassa didn’t want to play third wheel any longer.
Just as she finished speaking, another elevator arrived. She stepped in and closed the door behind her.
Alaric glanced briefly at the elevator before turning back to Hertha with a sly squint, “The first time you saw me, you asked for my
contact information, trying to reel me in. Now, you’re throwing yourself at a doctor old enough to be your dad without even
meeting him? Hertha, has three years without me left you that thirsty?”
Confronted with his usual cavalier remarks, Hertha scoffed as if unbothered, “Back then, I was drawn in by your looks, but turned
off by your character. Now, I’m attracted to Dr. Funke’s character. As for looks, I can get past that, can’t I?”
Her words were deliberate, aimed at riling Alaric, pretending she had lost all interest in him.

But only her heart knew the truth: the moment she saw him, the feelings she’d suppressed for years reignited, her heart
pounding with renewed fervor.
Yet things were different now. She couldn’t be as impulsive as before, chasing after someone on a whim.
Three years had matured Hertha.
The older one gets, the better they can control their impulses. They will think twice before acting, instead of just following their
immediate desires.
“What did you say? You really fell for Dr. Funke?” Alaric was provoked by Hertha’s words, his lean frame closing in on her.
“You must have had your eye on plenty of guys these past three years!” Alaric was the second son of the Falconer family, who
exuded an aristocratic aura, his presence naturally commanding and intimidating.
The moment he got angry, that aura of him seemed to intensify.
As he approached, Hertha felt the wave of his imposing presence, stepping back until her heels hit the wall.
Alaric braced his hand against the wall, encircling Hertha between the wall and his body, looking down at her with a mix of panic
and defiance.
Hertha had slimmed down compared with three years ago, her waistline even more delicate, but some curves seemed to have
filled out a bit more.