LOGINEZRAN’S POVI watched from the staircase as the seventh suitcase disappeared down the west wing hallway, Sydney trailing behind the staff with satisfaction.She hadn’t even glanced at me once since Robert's announcement.“You’re staring,” Jeanne muttered, appearing beside me, her arms crossed tight over her chest.I didn’t answer her immediately. Instead, I let out a despondent sigh. “I’m processing, Jeanne.”“Processing what? The fact that my dad just moved his son’s fiancée into the house without taking anyone’s feelings into consideration?”“That, and the fact that nobody in this family seems capable of stopping him. Not even Lucian.”Jeanne’s jaw tightened. “Charlyn is trying to talk to him now in the study.”I let out a small scoff and rolled my eyes. “Don’t tell me you think it’s gonna work.”“I know it won’t,” she admitted quietly. “but Charlyn is trying anyway.”We stood there a while longer, watching the last of Sydney’s belongings vanish upstairs, until Lucian’s voice cut sh
EZRAN’S POVErik faked a frown and jumped on his bed, the phone interface titling for a second. “What do you mean by that, Ezran? I was trying to be of help to you and got insulted by you.”“Insulted you?” I snorted. “I just stated the obvious truth. How did you even end up in the programming department?”Erik itched his nape, a wide grin settling on his face. “My love for tinkling codes outshines my love for gossip.”“You need an obvious recheck of that love, man. For you to fish out all this information about someone else, you deserve an accolade as the Paparazzi of the Year.” “Oh, please! A proper look online will give you all that info.”“Okay, Paparazzi of the Year.”The line went silent for a moment.“So—”“What—”We said simultaneously, drawing a chuckle from Erik.“Go first,” Erik said with a wink. “I feel like you have a more serious question to ask.”I shrugged nonchalantly. “If you insist.”“I insist, so tell me what I wanna hear.”I hesitated slightly before I continued.
EZRAN’S POVI spent the next few days studying towards my upcoming examinations. I didn’t do anything to make Robert fix his eyes on me, yet, the man still did.“So tell me Ezran,” Erik said, arching towards me. “Has Robert shown you any behavior that seems suspicious since that day?”“No.”He nodded slightly. “Don’t relent. Keep on observing if he wants to do something out of the ordinary.”“I will.”Silence settled between us for a minute, until I broke it with a question.“About Sydney Campbell. Do you by chance… know anything about her?”Erik gave me a lopsided smirk. “Already checking out your love rival?”My eyes widened in horror and I scoffed loudly. “Jeezus, Erik Anderson! Are you crazy? What love rival?”“Just kidding bro. Not like I would want your man to end up with your love rival.”“She’s not a love rival. Lucian and Sydney are just childhood friends. Besides, Lucian doesn’t like women and he only loves me. Don’t be a jinx because you’re single to a stupor.”He sneered.
EZRAN’S POVThe glass shattered against the tile floor, hot milk and shards scattering everywhere.For a horrifying second, the kitchen fell completely silent before chaos erupted around me.“Master Ezran!” Winnie rushed forward, nearly slipping on the wet floor in her haste. “Are you hurt? Did the hot water touch you?”“I’m fine,” I said quickly, though my voice came out unsteady, embarrassment flooding hot through my cheeks as footsteps came rushing from the hallway.Lucian appeared in the doorway first, Sydney trailing close behind, both of their expressions shifting from confusion to alarm the moment they took in the mess.“What happened?” Lucian’s eyes swept over me, checking for any injury with concern. He clearly couldn’t suppress it even now, even with Sydney standing right beside him.“Nothing. I just—” I gestured vaguely at the shattered glass, humiliation crawling up my neck. “The glass slipped from my hands probably because I wasn’t paying attention.”“Are you sure you’re n
Sydney’s eyes swept over me briefly, assessing interest before settling into polite disinterest. “Ezran Williamson, right? Lucian’s stepbrother?”“Yeah.”“Lovely to meet you,” she said curtly, although her attention had already drifted, searching the room until it landed squarely on Lucian who had just entered from the study.Her entire demeanor shifted the moment she spotted him, warmth flooding into her expression as she crossed the room quickly, throwing herself into his arms.What the—“Oh my Goodness, Lucian! It’s been far too long.”He accepted her embrace with a bit of stiff reciprocation. “Sydney. You look well.”“You look strikingly handsome, as usual.” She laughed, looping her arm through his. “Some things never change, right?”I turned away before I could examine my own reaction too closely. Instead, I offered the Campbell parents a stiff smile.“Ezran, was it?” Mrs. Campbell smiled warmly. “Robert tells us you’re studying programming in a top university. How fascinating.”
EZRAN’S POVWithout waiting to see the reaction on his face, I stormed away. Maybe because I looked stony and angry, nobody dared approach me or give those snide and snarky remarks I often heard about my personality.I quickly found Erik in the hallway, grinning widely and waving at me.“Yo,” he examined my face slightly. “What happened?”“I’ve got two babysitters and a compulsory driver now.”“Babysitters? I don’t seem to understand.”I looked around the hallway and my eyes landed on the figures of two men walking towards us. Erik followed my gaze and locked his eyes on them too.“Who… are they?” He asked in a whisper.“My new bodyguards. Robert insisted they follow me everywhere I go, for fear that I may secretly meet up with Lucian.” I let out a small scoff and rolled my eyes a little too hard. “Is there any difference between this and babysitting?”Erik chuckled without saying a word. By then, Andrei and Mike had already walked up to us.“When is your last class for today going to
Days moved faster than I thought and soon, it was weekend. I sat on my reading table, my fingers resting on the cursor of my laptop.I can't believe I've spent one week in a strange house. I was already bored to death.A thought nudged at the back of my mind and I shook it off frantically.Slowly,
The table fell into silence. Mom's eyes were pleading with me, Jenna was staring at her brother and Charlyn and Robert seemed unfazed by whatever we were doing.“What the fuck did you just call me?” I asked again, rage seeping slowly through me.“A selective brat. You have any issues with that?”G
The wedding dragged to an end and I heaved out in relief. Dragging my already tired limbs out of the hall, I dialed my best friend’s digits via video call.“Yo, Ez.” Erik’s caramel skin glowed as his face appeared on the screen. “Happy married life to you.”The heck?“My mom got married, not me.” I
Melbourne, Australia, 10:00am.EZRAN'S POV.I had exactly three problems that morning.One, my mother was getting married again, two, the black suit I was forced to wear made me look like a guest at a funeral, and three, this wedding was happening whether I liked it or not.I stood in front of the







