ADA BAYI SEPULANG DARI LUAR NEGERI

Chapter 1 

My Brother's Bestfriend 

CEE CEE ✍️ 😎 

Right City, Wrong house 

~Zarah~

"This place is... wow," I muttered as we entered the house, it had floor to ceiling windows, a fireplace and....well, it was perfect.

But something felt slightly off.

"So... how did you know about this place?" I asked Alex, who sat on the couch while I walked towards the window and stared down at the view of Las Vegas .

"Well, this is one of Ethan's properties," he chuckled. I nodded, then paused.

My stomach dropped. What?

"He knows we're here. I have the spare keys to the building. I mean, why lodge in an hotel when my friend has all this?" Alex said, glancing at me putting on the I don't care face.

"This is Ethan's house?" I asked slowly. He turned around fully, raising a brow at me.

"Yeah, it's his." His voice was quiet yet filled with curiosity. "What's wrong? You don't like it here?”

I pinched the bridge of my nose, disbelief washing over me. The fuck?

"I can't believe you brought me to Ethan's house of all places," I muttered. For God's sake, He knows what his friend was like and still he went ahead and brought me to his house?

Alex sat up straighter, his frown falling.

 Zarah, your feud with my friend is seriously getting ridiculous."

"Oh, really? You think this is ridiculous?" I snapped, crossing my arms. "Have you forgotten the time we both landed in a big mess and he bailed you out, putting the blame on me and leaving me leaving me there to rot?"

Alex opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off. "Or the time we crashed his car, and guess who got blamed for that? Me! He called me a bad bitch and a destroyer of things, told me to stop following you to his place 'bad things.' He acts like I'm the villain in your life." I gritted my teeth.

"zar..." Alex trailed off.

"And now you bring me to his house? You really think I won't get blamed for this too?" I asked. If I had known, I wouldn't have followed him.

Okay maybe, I still would have. I mean who would turn down a trip to Las Vegas? But we would have booked a hotel room.

Not here. Not this.

Alex stood up and turned around the couch, walking towards me.

"I'm wrong and I'm really sorry. I didn't think. I just wanted you to enjoy your first trip without our parents, and this house is... well, it's perfect." He gestured around the house, but I barely glanced at it. "I should have talked to you about it. You're right."

I let out a sigh.

"What next?" I asked and him shoulders sagged.

"Well, we could still stay here.. So..." He wriggled his fingers on my shoulder.

"We could still leave if you want," he added.

"If he won't tell at me here we could stay," I muttered. Well, he wouldn't just pop up in last Vegas now, would he?

Alex grinned, and I could see the relief on his face.

"We're not gonna stay inside all day now or are we?" He asked, a glint in his eyes. I pursed my lips.

"Please tell me we're going to see Grand canyon west," He added as he grabbed my hand, and he nodded a little too fast.

"Of course! We would," I muttered as we dragged our luggage to the room where we would be staying.

Despite all that Alex had said, I still felt slightly uncomfortable. Knowing the house belonged to Ethan just didn't sit right with me.

And hell, I knew something was bound to go wrong. Wherever the man was concerned, something always went wrong.

After freshening up, we decided to explore the neighborhood. At least, we should familiarize ourselves with the vicinity since we'd be staying for a month.

"Tomorrow, we'll go see the Tower , yeah?" Alex asked as we walked back after wandering through a few blocks.

I gave a small nod.

Alex sighed and tipped her head back, feeling the cool evening breeze wash over his face, he closed his eyes, a small smile playing on his face.

"It's nice to breathe fresh air outside of Las Vegas ," he sighed. I glanced over at him and followed his lead, raising my head and staring at the dark sky.

Alex suddenly opened his eyes, and stared at me. I could see the mischievous glint in them.

"The first one back to the house gets a paid Dried aged steak and champagne at the fanciest restaurant in the city!" he said, and before I could process what he said, he darted off.

A laugh escaped me as I ran after him. But oh boy, the guy was goddamn fast.

Who knows? Maybe I would enjoy this trip after all.

We stumbled into the compound and Alex pushed the door open stepping in.

I followed after him but he stopped abruptly that I crashed into his back.

"What's it?" I whispered as the color drained from his face.

He remained silent and I peeked at the inside from over his shoulder.

And there he was, in the living room, swirling a glass of something dark. Whiskey maybe.

His eyes were cold and his expression closed off as he finished the last of his drink, slamming the glass on the table.

I was surprised it didn't shatter. Alex shuddered lightly while a small frown crept up my face.

Ethan.

The devil had arrived.