His Belated Love for the Abandoned Ex-Wife Chapter 333: A Silent Rivalry

Scott gave a curt nod, letting the subject drop into silence as he sensed it was a dead end.

Brandon shifted his focus to Iris, his expression turning earnest. "So, are you planning to move Harper back here for good?"

"Yeah," Iris replied with a firm nod. "That's the plan."

"I've really missed that little girl," Brandon admitted frankly. "We need to make time for visits."

The words had barely left his mouth when Julian shot him a withering glare. He furrowed his brow, his voice flat and dripping with ice. "That won't be necessary."

A faint, knowing smile played on Brandon's lips as he adopted a slightly goading tone. "Don't get the wrong idea, Mr. Everhart. Iris and I are strictly platonic friends. It's completely innocent. I just happen to adore Harper. If we don't stay in touch, the friendship is bound to fade away."

Julian sneered in open disdain. "Do men and women ever actually have a purely innocent friendship?"

Brandon pressed his lips together, mulling it over. After a brief pause, he countered, "Well, whether it exists or not, you're the expert, aren't you, Mr. Everhart? After all, you and Lily have been 'friends' for over thirty years, and you even lived under the same roof for three of them, didn't you?"

Julian's hand curled into a tight fist, his eyes darkening to the color of a storm cloud.

The temperature in the cabin seemed to plummet ten degrees instantly; a freezing, suffocating aura radiated from him.

Both Iris and Scott picked up on the dangerous static crackling in the air. They exchanged nervous glances, shifting uneasily between Julian and Brandon.

Julian leaned back in his seat, vibrating with irritation. "From the sound of it, are you trying to drive a wedge between us, or are you just white-knighting for her?"

Brandon dropped the polite act. He raised an eyebrow and let out a cold, short laugh. "Both. Because frankly, you're not good enough for her."

Julian's gaze sharpened into a lethal point. "And you are?"

Brandon let out a soft, self-deprecating chuckle. "I'm not good enough either."

With that, a silent war was officially ignited. Hidden grudges pulled tight like a bowstring, and the air grew thick with palpable hostility.

Iris began to panic, the tension squeezing her chest. "Stop it, both of you. Can't we just talk like normal people?"

Julian and Brandon completely ignored her plea. Their rivalry intensified, the sparks flying between them volatile enough to seemingly tear the plane apart mid-flight.

Julian's lips curled into a cold, predatory smile, his gaze sharp as a razor blade. "Sorry to disappoint you, but she's my woman. She was in the past, and she will be in the future."

Brandon took a slow, deliberate sip of water. His expression remained calm, but there was a steely edge underneath. "Even marriages fall apart. What makes you so cocky about the future?"

The air inside the cabin felt like it had frozen solid.

Iris' fingers twisted together unconsciously, her knuckles turning white from the pressure.

Sensing the imminent explosion, Scott cleared his throat loudly, trying to diffuse the bomb. "Guys, come on. We're en route to handle a crisis here..."

Julian acted as if he hadn't heard a word. He leaned forward slightly, his voice low and vibrating with menace. "Brandon, are you really that obsessed with my woman?"

Brandon held his gaze unflinchingly. "Where were you when Iris was in labor? Where were you when Harper was burning up with a 104-degree fever that refused to break all night long?"

That question sliced into Julian's heart like a jagged knife. His pupils shrank, the line of his jaw tightened until it looked like stone, and the veins on the back of his hand bulged prominently.

Iris couldn't take it anymore. She shot up from her seat. "Dr. Whitmore, stop it. Don't say another word."

None of this was Julian's fault. How could Brandon speak to him like that?

But suddenly, Julian let out a laugh—dark and hollow, devoid of any real humor. "So you care that deeply about my woman and my child." He slowly rose to his feet, his tall frame casting a looming shadow. "But you seem to have forgotten something crucial—she had my child. That's a fact that will never change."

Brandon's expression flickered for a split second before settling back into practiced calm. "Blood ties are immutable, sure. But feelings require maintenance, Mr. Everhart. If you can't distinguish between a genuine friend and a rival, even the most 'innocent' friendship can blow up your relationship."

Julian's glare turned glacial. "Save your breath. But you, Brandon—being this invested in my woman—don't you think that's a little inappropriate?"

"Julian!" Iris' eyes were rimmed with red, panic setting in. "Don't be like this. Dr. Whitmore is just..."

"Just what?" Julian spun around to face her, a storm of complicated emotions swirling in his eyes. "Is a 'just a friend' supposed to tell me to my face that I don't deserve you?"

Seeing the situation spiral out of control, Scott quickly stood up and physically positioned himself between them. "You two, we have a critical mission ahead of us. Can we please put the personal drama on the back burner for now?"

The cabin lapsed into a heavy, brief silence.

Brandon was the first to step back. He raised both hands in a gesture of surrender. "My bad. I overstepped."

He looked at Iris, his features softening instantly. "Iris, I just don't want to see you get hurt again."

Julian let out a sharp, cold scoff and clamped his hand around Iris' wrist. "Our relationship is none of an outsider's business."

Iris stumbled a step as he yanked her forward, caught between a spike of anger and anxiety. "You're hurting me!"

Julian released her immediately, a flash of regret piercing through his eyes.

But the moment he looked up and saw the genuine concern etched on Brandon's face, that irrational, unexplainable rage flared up again with renewed vengeance.

"Come with me," Julian barked, wrapping an arm around Iris' waist in a grip that allowed for absolutely no argument, and marched her toward the lounge area at the rear of the cabin.

He slammed the door shut, sealing them in the secluded, confined space.

Julian planted his hands against the wall on either side of Iris' head, effectively trapping her between his body and the partition. His breathing was heavy and ragged.

"He's in love with you," Julian ground out, his voice hoarse with emotion. "What do you feel for him?"

Iris tilted her head back to look at him, tears swimming in her eyes. "We're just friends. You know that..."

"I don't know that!" Julian growled, then visibly forced himself to lower his volume. "Three years, Iris. You were gone for three years. The hardest years of your life, and he was the one right there by your side. He's the one who watched Harper grow up..." His voice dropped even lower, cracking with raw pain. "I am so jealous I feel like I'm losing my mind."