William and Jonathan exchanged a glance the moment Maximilian's words settled into the air, something unspoken passing cleanly between them before it turned into the faintest hint of a smile. It wasn't amusement, not quite, but recognition. Approval, even. Because that instinct, that immediate, unfiltered response to someone disrespecting the woman you loved… it was one they understood intimately. It was, in many ways, expected.
And yet… There was still a line. A boundary that hadn't been crossed.
Not yet.
Because what right did a man truly have… before he claimed it?
Maximilian turned toward them, fully expecting a reprimand or at the very least, a pointed comment about overstepping. But neither of them spoke. They simply watched him, their silence measured, waiting—not to correct him, but to hear what he would say next.
He exhaled, slow and controlled, as if grounding himself before stepping forward into something more deliberate.
