?


    "If Lena hadn''t stuck her nose where it didn''t belong, we wouldn''t even be here," Wayne grumbled, clearly trying to wrap this up. "Take her and leave. End of story."


    Aaron just smiled. "So that''s how you handle things? Snatch someone up whenever you feel like it, then pretend it''s no big deal when you let them go?"


    Wayne knew Aaron wasn''t here just for Lena-this was about more than her.


    Both of them were ying it cool, trying to keep things from blowing up, but Wayne was clearly hoping Aaron would take the hint and back off.


    Too bad for Wayne-Aaron wasn''t going anywhere.


    Wayne finally sighed, sizing up his options. With Cole gone and Jace refusing to back him, Wayne knew he didn''t have much leverage. Last thing he needed was to tick off someone


    like Aaron Ace.


    "What do you want from me? An apology?" Wayne muttered, taking a small step back.


    Aaron just nced at Lena. "Not my call. You should be asking her."


    Wayne''s face twisted like he''d swallowed a lemon. He hated being humiliated, and Aaron wasn''t even subtle about it.


    The an


    anger bubbling inside Wayne was about to blow.


    "So this isn''t about apologizing," Wayne snapped. "You just want to meddle in my family''s


    business."


    Aaron shrugged, unfazed. "Not interested."


    "Then leave," Wayne barked, trying to regain control.


    Aaron pulled his hand out of his pocket and motioned to Lena. "Let''s go."


    But Lena wasn''t about to leave me behind. She grabbed my hand. "Rea''sing too."


    Wayne''s scowl deepened. His mood? Totally tanking.


    I smirked and piled on. "Yeah, I''ll go, but I''m taking Jace and Isabel with me." No way I''d leave them here for Wayne to blow up atter. Wayne let out a dryugh. "Is this some kind of tag-team effort to ruin my day?"All content is property ? N?velDrama.Org.


    He turned back to Aaron. "You''re not just here for a rescue mission, are you? If you''re so eager to jump into this mess, I''ll make sure you can''t climb out."


    With a smuge p, Wayne summoned a flood of guys into the room-easily a dozen, maybe more. The air got heavy, and my stomach dropped. Chapter 8117


    Wayne stared at Aaron, his smirk screaming “checkmate.” “I''ll make sure you''refortable here until after my father''s funeral tomorrow." Trantion? He wasn''t just holding us-he was gunning for Aaron too.


    It was obvious Wayne was gearing up for something major, and if Hayden was nning his


    move tomorrow too.


    Eup


    Aaron didn''t even flinch. "Since I''m already here, wouldn''t it be rude if I skipped your dad''s funeral?" he quipped, smooth as ever.


    Lena shot me a quick, reassuring look. She trusted Aaronpletely, and I had to admit, he did seem unshakable.


    Still, Wayne wasn''t dumb. He had to have a n. If tomorrow was the day Hayden made his move, could Aaron really handle whatever Wayne was scheming?


    Wayne''s tone turned icy, dropping the fake niceties. “No need. We don''t do uninvited guests.”


    “I''ll remember that for next time. But since I''m already here, skipping out would be rude," he said, locking eyes with Wayne. "Don''t you think?" Chapter BOS