At the shopping mall.

Walking through the mall, Raina was thoroughly enjoying herself when her phone suddenly rang. The screen lit up, clearly displaying the name 'Maverick.'

"Where are you?"

"I'm shopping with Victoria. I will go home later by myself, so Maverick, you don’t need to pick me up." A hint of guilt passed through Raina's eyes, but she tried to keep her voice calm and composed.

"Ok." Maverick, a man of few words, responded indifferently.

Just as Raina felt a sense of relief, thinking that she had managed to keep her activities secret, a male voice unexpectedly popped up beside her, "Raina, I have already booked the restaurant for tonight."

"Ah!"

The sudden voice scared Raina, making her hand shake. She hastily pressed the end call button several times, terrified that Maverick would realize something was off.

But her nimble fingers were no match for the speed of sound. The sycophantic voice of her senior had already reached Maverick's ears.

Maverick gripped his phone, his knuckles turning white. His already stern face grew a few degrees colder.

Fortunately, Raina had never lied to him since childhood. Maverick quickly repressed his flash of anger, dismissing the man over the phone as a random passerby.

Since he wasn't going to pick Raina up today, he might as well go home.

"Drive."

"Yes, Major."

At Maverick’s cold command, the guard Adrian immediately started the car and drove away from the military district.

At dinner time.

Wendy, sharp-eyed as always, noticed that Maverick was eating less than usual and emanating a colder aura than normal. Just as she was about to tease Maverick with David, she caught Maverick's eyes scanning the empty spot where Raina usually sits.

Wendy understood.

She always knew her son had feelings for Raina.

"Alas..."

With a mournful sigh and heavy heart, Wendy put down her fork.

"Is the food not to your liking?" David, the loving husband, asked with concern.

"My precious Raina went for a blind date, how could I still have the appetite to eat."

As soon as Wendy's words fell, Maverick's emotionless face darkened instantly. His fork stopped mid-air, his narrowed eyes coldly staring at his mother.

"You must be mistaken, isn't Raina accompanying..."

Seeing David's bewildered expression, Wendy quickly pinched him to signal him to stop. An exchange of glances was all David needed to understand her meaning.

"You heard it too when Raina called just now. She was gushing about the blind date like she had lost her soul. I really can't bear the thought of her getting married so soon!"

Maverick tried to act unbothered, pushing a piece of vegetable into his mouth, but the lack of taste pissed him off.

Although his face remained expressionless, the fury burning in his deep eyes unnerved even Wendy.

Just as Wendy doubted if she might have overacted, the sudden sound of forks and plate landing on the table broke the silence in the air.

"I have matters to attend to in the military base. Take your time and enjoy the meal." Suddenly, Maverick stood up, banging his fork and plate on the table, his muscular legs carried him swiftly out of sight of David and Wendy.

Wendy covered her mouth and laughed, finally relaxing her tense nerves.

"If it still doesn't work at this stage, then I have no idea."

David raised his eyebrows, his eyes full of doting."

Leaving the Wilson residence, Maverick floored the accelerator, intending to find Raina before Adrian did, following his intuition to her favorite restaurant.

As he sped down the road, his memories surged instead of calming down.

Eight years ago, nearly twelve-year-old Raina sat alone under the rain on a stone bench in the military compound, her gaze blankly cast towards the direction of the big iron gate. She knew she had no family left in this world, but she waited hopelessly nonetheless.

At that time, Maverick approached her coolly, crouched down, wrapped her in his heavy military jacket, brought her back to Wilson family, and made a decisive commitment to her unique to soldiers, "From now on, I'll protect you."

And he did just that for eight years.

Submerged in his memories, Maverick clenched the steering wheel, exerting too much force causing the veins bulging along his neck, exuding an intimidating air. If this was simply the affection of a brother towards his sister, he might not even believe it himself.

Just as expected, as soon as Maverick reached the restaurant, he spotted the 'ringleader' who was thoroughly enjoying her meal, and the two men with flattering expressions on their faces.

This young girl was getting bolder.

She dared to go out for a meal with other men without his permission. Even dared to lie to him about going on a blind date!

Maverick steps out of the car, his overwhelming fury causing him to slam the car door shut with a deafening noise.

In the restaurant.

Raina, who was halfway through her steak, somehow senses a massive shift of energy, causing her to grip her cutlery too hard. With a "clack", a large piece of steak falls onto the table.

"What's going on with you? Even the tasty piece of meat now flies off?" Victoria teases as she shares some of her steak with Raina.

"Just focus on your date, ignore me who only came to keep you company."

Raina verbally denies while her actions indicate otherwise as she starts to slice the steak on her plate.

As the meal is drawing to an end, the two men propose a toast to commemorate their meeting.

Victoria is not a drinker, and neither does Raina drink, but for the happiness of her best friend, she takes on this burden and holders up her glass of wine. However, just as she was about to drink, the sudden appearance of Maverick in her line of sight startles her, causing her to set down her glass and spring up from her seat.

Even the passers-by feel a sudden chill...

"Maverick? You... how come you're here?" Raina, flustered and confused, couldn't even articulate her words properly.

"Have you been drinking?"

Maverick's sharp gaze sweeps over the two men before he effortlessly picks them up as if they were mere chicks.

"No, no! Put them down!" Raina immediately waves her hands in panic, but glancing at the conspicuous glass of wine on the table, she couldn't help but add timidly, "I... I haven't had a chance to drink it yet."

But in Maverick's perspective, whether Raina has drunk the wine or not wasn't the point—the fact is, if he hadn't arrived in time, wouldn't the wine have already been down her throat?

"This girl has never taken his words to heart." Maverick thought inwardly.

With a heavy throw, the two men landed on the ground, their howls of pain echoing as if they were broken all over.

"Go home!"

Maverick tried to control his temper, dropping the two words to Raina and turning away.

Raina knew very well that this was a signal of Maverick's imminent temper outbreak. If she didn't comply, the consequences would be severe.

But she wouldn't just take it today.

On any other day, Raina would have immediately admitted her mistake and obediently followed Maverick home, without uttering another word. But today, she was not the main character. From the expression of the blind date man and his friend, it was evident they were quite scared. She knew she must have messed up the blind date for Victoria.

A mix of guilt and indignation rushed to Raina's mind, and in a fit of rage, she charged towards Maverick, blocking his path with a daring stride.