Kade had already done everything he could to help Maria’s family. It was his parents who were worried that Maria’s family business being in trouble would drag him down, so they no longer supported him being with Maria.

His mother nagged him about it every day, and after hearing it so often, he became frustrated and did not know what to do.

On top of that, he did not fully understand his own feelings. He was not sure whether what he felt for Maria was friendship or love.

While he was struggling with this, his company arranged for him to return to Huntington to take over all their domestic business. He took this opportunity to give himself some time to think—was he truly in love with Maria, or was it just friendship?

When he heard Imogen say she wanted to match Maria with her cousin, Kade felt a pang of panic and fear of losing her. This gave him a moment of clarity and he realized that he did have romantic feelings for Maria.

He was in love with her.

Dylan chimed in, “Mr. But